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Wings Over Atreia: Ode to 3.0, verse three -- crafting
When, oh when will my expansion get here? Oh when, oh when could it be? With its new recipes and crafting dailies, Oh when, oh when can it be? I just can't get this song out of my head. No matter how hard I try, I can't keep my mind away from Aion's upcoming 3.0 patch/expansion, Ascension. Ignoring it didn't work. Taking one little peek didn't either. Perhaps sharing and getting the tune stuck in someone else's head might do the trick? Nope; I've tried that for the last two weeks to no avail. I have even tried replacing it with other ditties, jingles, and orchestrations, but the melody always morphs back into something about that tempting little patch. My last hope is to play, but since that won't be a viable option for a while (still no definitive date, dagnabbit!), I guess that leaves me with just one choice: If you can't beat it, join it. Yup, I will just have to hum along while busying myself learning more about all the neat little tidbits, like the ones coming the way of the crafters. Ah, you thought that perhaps adventurers were the only ones getting the goods? If so, you thought wrong. Beyond recipes, Ascension actually introduces some intriguing (and useful) new features specifically related to crafting.
Wings Over Atreia: Ode to 3.0, second verse
Encore! You are my expansion, My favorite expansion, You'll make me happy With a house and more. You have to know, dear, How much I want you! Please hurry the expansion to my door! Just when I thought I was getting a handle on waiting for Aion's sorta-soon-to-be-released 3.0 patch, NCsoft went and announced a slightly less nebulous launch date of "this spring." Our patch-to-be even has the auspicious privilege of having a name: Ascension. And you know a name means extra special! WOOO! I, of course, started a requisite wing-flapping celebratory dance, but my tune soon changed: As exciting as this news was, I quickly realized that the more concrete the knowledge, the more I wanted it to release already. GAH -- this wait is truly taxing my patience! There is just so much to look forward to. Last week I regaled you with a stirring, soulful rendition of anticipation for 3.0. Together we explored just a few of the goodies in store for patient and -- luckily for me -- not-so-patient Daevas alike. This week the recital continues, and as promised, Wings Over Atreia takes another peek at more of the features coming our way and highlights some of the more tantalizing additions and changes, including new fortresses with their own unique siege system, XP changes, mounts, and more.
Age of Conan Dreamworld patch goes live, faction grind reduced
Today's the big day for Age of Conan's Dreamworld engine upgrade, and Funcom has made the extensive notes available as it deploys the update to the live servers. Dreamworld features improved memory handling, loading times, framerates, and network latency as well as several visual upgrades (including the addition of tree wind, god rays, and higher-quality water for DX9 users). The 2.1.3 patch also brings a few notable tweaks aside from Dreamworld, including minigame class balance fixes and the ability to purchase Khitai faction items (including simple trophies, marks of acclaim, and imperial insignias) with veteran tokens. Age of Conan's launcher notes that "this is part of the current focus on improving the faction progression in Khitai, which will continue in subsequent updates with a significant increase in the speed of progression for faction." Check out the full patch notes on the official AoC forums.
