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CABAL readies Episode V expansion
CABAL Online is gearing up for its latest expansion, and the meaty Episode V: Mercenaries looks to add quite a bit of content to the free-to-play action MMORPG. Chief among the additions are a mailing system, a complete revamp of the dungeon and loot drop systems, and the titular NPC mercs. The new mercenary system gives players the ability to summon an NPC ally inside of the game's dungeons, while simultaneously providing new objectives thanks to a variety of different mercs available to find and recruit. Six different NPCs will be available initially, with new and stronger flavors set for future release. Episode V is also bringing dual pet functionality to CABAL, as well as a variety of features centered around the game's dungeons. Players may now pause dungeon encounters, talk to competing groups via a dungeon chat channel, and keep track of entry requirements on the new dungeon interface. The expansion is slated for December, and we'll keep you posted as a firm release date becomes available. In the meantime, check out the gallery of new screenshots below. %Gallery-108751%
Exploring Eberron: My shopping cart
Today I was hoping to open up my full purchase history at the Dungeons and Dragons Online store and do an analysis of everything I've bought since the store was put into the game. Unfortunately, I've since discovered that -- short of saving each and every confirmation email that Turbine sends me -- there's no accessible store history, either in the game or outside of it. Clicking "View Purchase History" in the store simply showed me a couple Turbine point buys, but that's it. That makes me a sad panda barbarian. So pushing aside the issue of why Turbine doesn't want me to see my order history ("Perhaps so you don't question future purchases," the quiet cynic inside me whispers), I'll have to do this via questionable memory. I've been a subscriber since the DDO F2P switch, which nets me a portion of "free" TP per month, but I've also dropped additional money -- perhaps three times -- to beef up my TP reservoir so that I could get a couple big ticket items. So seeing as how I don't have to worry about purchasing adventure packs, on what have I been spending my allowance? Hit the jump to find out!
Dungeons and Dragons Online offers another Hireling weekend for the Holiday
After the success of the first Dungeons and Dragons Online hireling preview, the folks at Turbine have opened the doors on their newest game mechanic for yet another trial. The second hireling preview began on Wednesday of this week, and will be going all throughout the weekend into Monday morning. The announcement of the program at the official forums includes a number of changes to the system as they hope to roll it out on live servers. This preview weekend still features limited functionality, and the newest changes aren't available over the course of this sneak peek. Changes to the hireling concept surround the NPC's "usage". Hireling contracts are now one-use items that can be purchased from the appropriate vendors; because of this change, the contracts are now far less-expensive than the original 'timed' versions of the hireling contracts. A new 'defensive' mode has also been added to the creatures' AI, and hireling clerics have reprioritized the act of healing both themselves and their comrades. Full notes on the changes to the hireling system will be available in the patch notes once the feature is fully added to the game.
More details on Dungeons and Dragons Online's Module 8
We're pretty well swept up in the Wrath of the Lich King launch today, but that doesn't mean we're not keeping an eye on the rest of the MMO world. Our most recent Massively Speaking podcast featured an interview with Turbine's Kate Paiz, Senior Producer for Dungeons and Dragons Online, conducted by our overlord Michael Zenke. The interview hits on some details of Turbine's plans for Dungeon and Dragons Online in Module 8 (namely 'hirelings') and beyond. But there's more -- GameBanshee recently ran a Turbine interview detailing how DDO has changed in Module 8 over its previous iterations. The GameBanshee interview gives us some additional details on Module 8's hirelings, and focuses on the new Character Generation system, a story-based introduction to the game, and content for higher-level players.
