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Eden Eternal's Magician previewed in new video
Eden Eternal's beta is coming up fast (June 2nd, if you're keeping track), and today we've got another class teaser for those of you anxiously awaiting the free-to-play fantasy title from Aeria Games. Our last video focused on the game's Warrior class, but this time around we're taking a look at how the other half lives courtesy of the Magician archetype. Unsurprisingly, the Magician lives and dies by his ranged DPS, and thanks to Eden Eternal's switching mechanics, you can swap to one of the game's 11 other classes if you're dying a little too often. Chances are you'll do fine, though, as Magicians deal elemental damage, cast buffs, turn invisible, and provide party teleports. The staff is the Magician's weapon of choice, and he can also pick from eight class-specific skills and five branch skills shared with other magic DPS classes. Head past the cut for a closer look at the new Magician video.
Wasteland Diaries: Don't give up
In Fallen Earth PvP, there is a pretty wide rift between the haves and the have-nots. A novice will rarely fare well in Fallen Earth combat, but there are rare exceptions. There are some groups that fight so well that it might even seem like they are hacking or cheating in some way. Usually, this isn't the case. What they are doing, however, is using every advantage they can get out of the game mechanics. They are also working together like a well-oiled machine. This takes a bit of knowledge and a lot of practice. A well-trained and coordinated team will make short work of a rag-tag pick-up group. In this post, I will lay out the basic knowledge that you will need to PvP. If you take these few pointers to heart, you will be more likely to understand what happens when you lose and what to do to correct it. Overcoming the learning curve in Fallen Earth PvP requires two things. The first and most important thing is patience. When you get knocked down, you have to brush yourself off and try again. The second thing you will need is a firm understanding of the game mechanics. If you understand the rules of the game, you will be more likely to figure out what you did wrong and what your opponents did right. I can't teach you how to be patient, but I can tell you a few things about the game mechanics that might help you stay alive. Even if you never plan to PvP (mobs can be vicious too), click past the cut to start your training.
Behind the Mask: Being a good team player
The holy trinity is a sort of abolished concept in recent MMOs, and Champions Online is really no different. It's easy to make healer-tanks, tank-DPS, healer-DPS, and all sorts of variations on those themes. I commented previously that I like the idea of the trinity, but that was a year ago, and I've got a little more to say. Champions is a hard game to explain in terms of role, so I don't really expect the community at large to actually accept a lot of what I'm explaining here. However, this is a breakdown of the real contributions each person can make to a team. Although there is no real "crowd control" role, there are still a lot of ways people can contribute to victory.
Enter at Your Own Rift: Looking for groups
Like some of you, I feel that RIFT's Update 1.2 can't get here soon enough. A good content update, in my opinion, has a little something for everyone, and in talking with Trion Worlds last week, I definitely got that feeling from this patch. The team is catering to endgame players with Slivers, build-enthusiasts with a fifth role, rift-runners with new types of dynamic events, and people who aren't content to merely spam my Twitter feed with accomplishments but must now do so from inside Facebook as well. I'd be lying if I said I'm not planning on spending huge amounts of time assembling dashing and fashionable outfits for my characters once the wardrobe is in the game, too. I'm all about outfits in Lord of the Rings Online, so it's great to see RIFT bring this type of system into the game (unlike some other stubborn studios, which shall remain nameless). Players like to feel powerful while looking incredible, and this outfit system will hopefully allay some of the complaints of similar-looking toons. Above all this in Update 1.2 towers one of the biggest changes to the game yet: the Looking for Group (LFG) tool. Designed to assemble teams of players to tackle dungeons and group quests, the LFG tool will certainly change how we play RIFT. Will it be a good change or bad? That's the $1,000,000 question, which I will tackle after these brief messages, by which I mean, "after the jump."
Shifting Perspectives: Tanks, bribes, and player behavior, part 2
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Shifting Perspectives for cat, bear, restoration and balance druids. This Tuesday, we are still not sure if we can be bribed, but have reached the conclusion that others might be. This week we return for the conclusion of our series examining the likely impact of the new Call to Arms system debuting in patch 4.1. If you're looking for last week's article, you'll find that here: Shifting Perspectives: Tanks, bribes, and player behavior. To summarize the observations and argument of the first article as quickly as possible, Cataclysm returned players to the difficulty of The Burning Crusade instancing model without the benefits that tanks gained from building a reputation as competent players -- namely, the reasonable expectation that groups would cooperate with kill orders and any requests for crowd control. The dungeon finder, arguably a tool better suited to the ease and speed of Wrath of the Lich King heroics, has left tanks in an unfortunate position: They now attempt to lead groups through more difficult content with the unreliable vote kick as their sole defense against obstreperous players. That DPS queue times have soared under the present circumstances shouldn't arrive as a shock. I'm going to try to explain why Call to Arms may very well result in more tanks queueing for 5-mans through the dungeon finder and who we're likely to see if and/or when this happens.
TERA releases Community Play Event numbers
If you're a TERA fan but not lucky enough to score an invite to En Masse Entertainment's recent Community Play Event (CPE), you can take heart in the fact that the company has released some information pertaining to all the players who did attend. We know, there's the potential for some salt in the wound here, but En Masse's Jon Tuite nonetheless has some interesting factoids relating to character races, classes, leveling trends, and many other data points. It seems that Castanics were the most popular race during the recent CPE, and humanoid races in general accounted for a whopping 68% of all characters. Tuite also points out that the Baraka race was the least popular (7% of the population) and postulates that the lack of a female version could be the culprit. In terms of class and party dynamics, the CPE data aren't far removed from your average fantasy MMO (i.e., there were a plethora of DPS types, fewer tanks, and even fewer healers). These stats are the tip of the proverbial iceberg, and you can indulge in more number-crunching at the official TERA website.
Shifting Perspectives: Tanks, bribes, and player behavior
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Shifting Perspectives for cat, bear, restoration and balance druids. This Tuesday, we are not sure if we can be bribed. As most of you are probably aware, Blizzard recently announced a new incentive structure for the dungeon finder system called the Call to Arms. In essence, it rewards players for performing what is then the most-needed role in the dungeon finder with a BoA bag containing gold, flasks, and, potentially, mounts and pets. The Tuesday Shifting column covers the two roles most likely to receive the "goodie bags" -- tanking and healing (I don't think anyone's laboring under the delusion that groups can't get off the ground due to a lack of DPS) -- and the ensuing firestorm on the forums caught my eye. Predictably, players have mixed feelings about the change. Many (I think correctly) blame players' rudeness and uncooperative attitudes for driving off the tank population, but even more are indignant that Blizzard is "bribing" tanks for something they feel should have been addressed by role redesign. Examine all the arguments in their totality, and I think there's only one real conclusion: I don't believe that Blizzard failed in its effort to make tanking more interesting and enjoyable. I do believe that developers are struggling to deal with a problem created and driven almost entirely by player behavior. Modern heroics aren't fun, not because the content is bad (it's not) or overtuned (it's fine), but Cataclysm combines parts of The Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King 5-man experience that don't play well with each other. The dungeon finder contributes to these problems, but not in the way that you'd think.
DOFUS introduces Rogue and Masqueraider classes
Class-based fantasy games aren't unusual these days; in fact, they're the standard. It's rare that such a title has more than a handful of classes, though. Then there's DOFUS. The six-year-old free-to-play title recently added Masqueraiders and Rogues, bringing the game's class total to a whopping 14. Rogues function a bit differently than the rascally backstabbers you may be used to from other games. Rogues effectively dictate actions on the battlefield through the use of bombs and walls, which direct enemy movements and function as a form of crowd control. Masqueraiders take their power from a variety of wearable masks, which allow the player to adopt several fighting styles. Three masks types are available: the cowardly mask (ranged damage), the psychopath mask (close combat damage), and the classic mask (crowd control). Finally, Masqueraiders can also avail themselves of several buff-type spells including plastron, tororuga, and trance. Head to the official DOFUS website for all the details.
Patch 4.1: Blizzard unveils dungeon finder Call to Arms
Blizzard just posted a huge announcement to the WoW community site, unveiling the dungeon finder's newest evolution -- Call to Arms. Aimed at reducing the time for dungeon queues, the new Call to Arms will give players the opportunity to queue for level-85 heroics as "needed" roles (tanks and healers) to shorten queues and be rewarded with goodie bags containing gold, rare gems, companion pets, and mounts like the Deathcharger's Reins, Swift White Hawkstrider, and more.
Enter at Your Own Rift: 'Role' play
In retrospect, it was all my fault. I had gotten too used to just throwing RIFT dungeon groups together and assuming that with the flexible soul system we'd be able to provide everything necessary no matter what archetype mixup we had. I suppose it's a testament to Trion Worlds' design that an exact group composition wasn't a top concern -- the goal is just getting five willing players together for a fun run. We were running Darkening Deeps, and I decided to start a group so that I could show off the dungeon to Rubi. We had two Rogues, two Mages and a Warrior, and I felt pretty confident going in that we would prevail. And while the Warrior stepped up and said he would tank -- taking the burden off of my Riftstalker build -- everyone else was curiously quiet when I asked if there was another healer who could back up my Bard heals for boss fights. Nothing. Not a peep. The other Rogue didn't have a Bard spec, and the Mages were whistling innocently when I asked if they happened to have a Chloromancer role tucked in their back pocket. Oh crud. This was going to hurt. Six trash pulls into the dungeon later, I called it and said that we simply didn't have enough healing power to make it through the bosses. My bad, I said, thanks for playing!
Reader UI of the Week: Clean up with Jeska's UI
Each week, WoW Insider brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which spotlights the latest user interface addons. Have a screenshot of your own UI that you'd like to submit? Send your screenshots along with info on what mods you're using to readerui@wowinsider.com. Oh, hello there. I didn't hear you come in. Make yourself at home while we talk about Jeska's user interface, a pretty cool center setup that makes tracking hunter cooldowns and timers a breeze. And since Jeska is playing on a laptop, we can discuss some more tips and tricks for laptop users. Before we begin, though, I want to put the call out again for more submissions to the column. No, we aren't running low -- you guys are great at submitting and putting cool stuff in my email. Rather, I want to begin to categorize each user interface in terms of DPS, healer, tank, PvP- or PvE-focused, and all that, so that new readers have an easier avenue to finding interfaces that fit their playstyles. Here's what you can do: Make it absolutely clear which spec or role your UI best represents, and take screenshots that can exemplify that. That's it! And please, please, please remember to put "Reader UI of the Week" in the subject of your email; if it's not that, I'm not going to get your email. Yay for UIs! Submit your user interfaces, screenshots, and descriptions to readerui@wowinsider.com. %Gallery-19902%
Alter-Ego: An overview of the trinity in DC Universe Online
In DC Universe Online, all of the different powersets can pump out DPS -- however, the trinity is alive and well even in this superhero game. Thankfully, due to the way the powers are designed, our ability to stack effects, and the heavy utilization of combos, grouping or raiding in DC Universe Online doesn't generally feel like you're stuck simply mashing buttons. If you get in with a regular group, you'll learn the ways you can play your powers off each other using synergy, thereby adding an entirely new level of awareness to encounters. Unfortunately, endgame isn't just about going into an instance and unleashing everyone's max damage to tear through the place. While all characters can do damage in DC Universe Online, roles are still vitally important for group PvE and endgame content. As a preamble to a series that will look at builds for each role in the game and what they can bring to the table, I thought it would be a good idea to take this first week to look at which powersets go with the roles players use in endgame. Join me behind the break as I break it all down for those who are new to the game or perhaps are looking for a refresher.
The Daily Grind: Should the MMO holy trinity be a thing of the past?
Dungeons, lairs, and instances, oh my! No, Toto, you are definitely not in Kansas anymore. No matter what game you play, there is usually some sort of division of roles that a toon you roll takes on -- some characters are support, some are up-font and center, and others stick to the side and unload what their mama gave them. Undeniably, the holy trinity seems to be something of a standard in most MMOs -- you are going to have to make a choice at some point about how you actually play. But maybe some day you wouldn't have to choose a spec, roll a new toon, or make compromises in your class picks. Dreams of being a healer who can actually kick some serious winged-monkey butt could be a thing of the future. Or maybe it will never happen. That's why I pose the following to all of you: If the holy trinity became a thing of the past, how would you envision your favorite game changing? Would you rather see every class be able to use a mix of skills? Could it actually work, or would it just create games full of clone characters? 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!
Lost Pages of Taborea: Balancing vs. viable vs. fun
Thoughts of class-balancing, class-viability and triple-class combinations have been swimming in my head lately. In the wake of RIFT's open beta, Frogster announced that Runes of Magic will be moving to a triple-class system in early April. Along with a lot of speculation on how this will change RoM, there's talk of how badly three-class combos will upset class-balancing where some already feel classes are skewed. Viable and balanced are pretty subjective terms in the MMO genre that make it hard for any two players to be on the same page. I find it even more confusing when some make it sound like there's a mass exodus to RIFT because of -- in part -- the idea that RoM's classes are more out of tune than yours truly trying to sing Zombie. These ideas are highly speculative. I'd like to throw my own opinions in about what makes a class in RoM viable, what not to look for when trying to find balance, and why we may not want to squeeze every possible class combination into the holy trinity of healer, DPS and tank.
The Care and Feeding of Warriors: Patch 4.1 PTR Warrior changes
Every week, WoW Insider brings you The Care and Feeding of Warriors, the column dedicated to arms, fury and protection warriors. Despite repeated blows to the head from dragons, demons, Old Gods and whatever that thing over there was, Matthew Rossi will be your host. It wouldn't be a patch without warrior changes, and patch 4.1 is nothing if it isn't a patch. What are the really big standouts from an initial overview pass of the changes? Rallying Cry is a new ability that seems to work like Last Stand for the entire party or raid. Colossus Smash now only lowers armor by 70% for 6 seconds, down from 100%. Intercept stun is reduced to 1 second. In addition, Juggernaut will no longer increase the stun duration of Charge. Whirlwind will now reduce its cooldown by 6 seconds if it strikes four or more targets. Several arms abilities have had their damage increased, from Mortal Strike (175% weapon damage) to Overpower (145% weapon damage) to the talented Improved Slam (increases slam damage by 20/40%, up from 10/20%). These are most likely intended to compensate arms for losing Colossus Smash's armor penetration, indicating that nerf was aimed at fury DPS. Finally, Improved Hamstring will now also reduce the global cooldown on Hamstring by half a second for 1 point and a full second for two. Less stunning for warriors and more snaring seems to be the order of the day.
Reader UI of the Week: Skulldamage's UI
Each week, WoW Insider brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which spotlights the latest user interface addons. Have a screenshot of your own UI that you'd like to submit? Send your screenshots along with info on what mods you're using to readerui@wowinsider.com. Another week, another Reader UI of said week. I've got a pretty contentious one for you guys, too, so buckle up. This week, we're taking a look at Skulldamage's UI. The general aim of this enhancement shaman's UI is keeping the number of addons active to a bare minimum, including some potentially important ones. What we have, then, is an exercise in keeping as much of the default UI as possible while having enough competency tools to raid effectively. Let's see what we're working with.
Behind the Mask: Fixing the glass cannons
There's a sharp divide between the Champions Online that I play and the Champions Online played by the majority of the readers here at Massively. I play the heavily customized, freeform game -- and even among freeform players, I am aggressive in my builds. I avoid T0 blasts like the plague (although Two-Gun Mojo is pretty good), and I pick my powers with the sole intention of avoiding waste. Most of you guys play F2P now, and there's nothing wrong with that at all. All of the Archetypes are viable, especially in team situations. In general, they can't quite compete with a polished freeform character, but they're not dead spots in a lair, and they work surprisingly well when teamed up with freeform supermen (and women). Solo, it's a slightly different story. Of the current 10 Archetypes, most solo wonderfully, easily meeting the challenges present in the Normal difficulty game. That leaves three... and all share one similarity: They use the Avenger role. The Silver Avengers (not to be confused with the in-game organization of the same name) are very capable Archetypes. I've mentioned in the past that Inferno is one of the strongest, and to wit, all three Avengers absolutely roll through most content, especially on teams. Outside of teams, the three Avengers are so squishy that they suffer a bit when taking on the big baddies -- Master Villains and Super Villains. This week, I sought to find out the answer: Can Silver Avengers solo?
The Daily Grind: What aspects of DIKU MMOs make you laugh?
So I'm blowing up Triroan in Aion's Theobomos Labs dungeon the other night. He's a big nasty that drops decent equipment for 50ish Daevas, and my six-man group was running the instance for the umpteenth time in the hopes of helping out some of our gear-poor compadres. Beating Triroan with a great tank in your party is one of the most boring things in the game if you're a Sorcerer, as all you have to do is stand in the back of the room and nuke the living hell out of the boss while the plate class holds aggro. This got me to thinking how silly a lot of DIKU mechanics really are from an immersion standpoint. Sure you can argue that you suspend your disbelief simply by virtue of flinging fireballs or sprouting wings, but the fact that a giant monster ignores the people doing him the most harm to focus on the heavily armored guy who couldn't top a DPS chart if his life depended on it just makes me chuckle. DIKU is clearly the language of MMOs, as just about every game that comes out nowadays is indebted to it in a big way. It's an old and incredibly flawed system, though, and so we ask you, Massively mobsters: What other DIKU holdovers seem silly, far-fetched, or otherwise cackle-worthy to you? 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!
In defense of gear simulations
Josh Myers is not a scientist. The closest he's ever come to being one is winning the Science Fair in 8th grade and getting straight As in physics in high school. Despite these clear signs telling him to look for a career in science, he decided instead to go for a degree in English. His wallet hasn't forgiven him since. "Just sim it" is a phrase almost everyone who has played World of Warcraft in the past few years is familiar with. Should my enhancement shaman use Tunic of Failed Experiments or Voltage Source Chestguard? Sim it. How much of a DPS increase is the four-piece Firelord's Vestments bonus? Spreadsheet it. How much DPS am I losing since I can't afford a Flask of the Winds on my hunter? SIM IT! I'll be the very first to say that saying "just sim it" isn't a constructive thing to say. Beyond being slightly rude, it doesn't explain why simming is such a good idea. However, while I find "just sim it" to be in poor taste, the actual act of simming or spreadsheeting gear choices is a really good idea. This post aims to address why we encourage spreadsheeting your DPS choices.
The middle of the pack is a fine place to be
When I was a young kid, I was a ball hog. This was most often obvious when I played soccer, when I'd spend entire minutes running the ball down the field in an attempt to score when my teammates were wide open and available. Sometimes, I'd get lucky and score a goal. Most of the time, my unwillingness to pass got me blocked by half the opposing team and earned me a nice, cozy spot on the time-out bench as my coaches tried to instill some sense of being a team player into my young mind. This seems to be a lesson a large number of us playing World of Warcraft missed from our childhood. We may not have a literal ball to hold away from our teammates as we sprint down the field, but we have Recount and our own personal DPS. Last week, I was doing my daily ritual of browsing the official Damage Dealing forums when I came upon a thread about fury warriors. The title of the thread was clearly designed to grab attention, some title along the lines of "Fury Warriors NEED a buff NOW" or something else as startlingly original. The body of the thread was what really got to me, though. It said, paraphrased, "Fury warriors are in a bad place in terms of PvE DPS right now. We're in the middle of the pack in terms of DPS and need to be buffed to be higher."
