Lost Pages of Taborea: Snowflake Festival
Jingle brother's time is here. Time for slaying. Time for cheer. Presents abound every Christmas in the Snowflake Festival, and I've been hoarding them like a squirrel. This is one of my favorite holidays, probably my favorite one in Runes of Magic. Not only are there lots of treats to get, but the quests are fun. I reminisced last week about the events held in RoM year-round, but I wanted to run through some of the things I've been doing in this year's festival.
Despite some recent patching trouble, the holiday is up and running. There are new mounts, furniture, Christmas graphics and prizes galore to enjoy this year. If you've never played RoM during the Snowflake Festival -- or never took part in the quests -- this will serve as a fun guide and idea engine for what's in store for you. Get your space bar primed and ready for lots of jumping and read on past the break.
Charity mounts
Runewaker and Frogster sold a Moa's Charity Steed and donated some of the proceeds to Save the Children last year. This year, the companies are at it again with a brand-new 2-player Charity Wolf Steed, but the original Moa's Charity Steed is back up for sale as well.
I remember how excited I was when I got the Moa's Charity Steed. It's my favorite mount. I think it's the best-looking mount in RoM, but that's just me. This new Wolf Charity Steed is amazing as well. It's huge with cool sounds and animations. I think it easily takes second place for best mount. I'm sure a lot of marketing is involved, but I thought it was pretty neat that the two coolest mounts in RoM were both sold as fundraisers. While profit abounds, it's good to know companies can -- and are -- still helping people in our country and the world.
Jingle brothers
This is the first year I've obtained the title, but I'm now the proud owner of "I Believe I Can Fly." It was actually a lot easier this time around because I already had practice getting on the rooftops from last year. It was very laggy in Logar and Harf Trading Post, but with a little perseverance -- and tuned-down graphics -- it didn't take long. Each Jingle brother also gives you a stocking that rewards a random gift. You'll have 10 by the time you're done. I've already gotten some nice phirius potions and hat-shaped biscuits. The phirius potions are always nice, and the biscuits yeild 50 percent HP and MP when eaten. Even after obtaining the title, you can continue to turn in 10 slippery boar oils each day for another stocking. I'm stocking up on as much as I to help in dungeons. Completing the quest also gives a locked chest that you can open with an ancient treasure key. The reward is random, and I received a home-sweet-home teleport stone.
I'll tell you right now. The hardest Jingle brother for me to get to was the one in Silverfall, near the teleporter. You have to jump to the roof of the first building, then make the tricky jump onto the house next to it. It will take patience.
I still experienced some confusion when I went to sign up for the quest. You have to click through a couple of pages in the quest window, but stay away from just turning in 10 slippery boar oils. There's an option that will allow you to just trade in that oil for a stocking, and then you'll be locked out of the quest until the next day. If you don't have the oil yet, the quest doesn't give you an accept confirmation, which enticed me to try the other choice as well. Just collect the oil, return to Donichuka -- in Varanas' Central Plaza or Logar -- and you'll get a stack of 10 special boar oil mix. Then you're ready to go climb some rooftops.
Bad Santa
Like Krystalle showed us in One Shots, Santa has taken on a sadly mean demeanor and stolen all the kids' presents. But fear not; I've been diligently face-planting these pushovers and taking back the lost gifts. Jingle Brother Mark will collect the lost gifts and give rewards for returning different amounts of them. Besides, Andrew Dell just needs a little help getting his sled up and running to deliver gifts to all the good children. He just needs you to find some reindeer, magical stones and sled fragments. Sled fragments are random drops; stones are mined near logar; and the deer can be found in Ystra Highlands.
There's also a tree-decorating NPC who is collecting unknown gifts that drop randomly from mobs.
Holiday furniture
After dropping some dough on the Wolf Charity Steed, I didn't have much left over for furniture. But I did get a blue Christmas tree and the sofa for my humble abode. I like that there's a wider selection for Christmas than for Halloween -- sofas, chairs, costumes, rugs, trees, food, decorations, pets and a few pieces specifically for guild castles. I'm not a huge fan of the male costume, but I love housing. I'm glad the furniture is permanent too. It might take me many Christmases, but I'm slowly getting my hands on all the furniture.
The number of rewards is so crazy this year that I'm running out of room to store them all. I only hope I can get more game time in between working and real-life celebrating. My biggest goal is to collect the biscuits and phirius potions that will be a big help in dungeons. By taking advantage of Christmas -- and other holidays -- I can really boost my potential in dungeons without spending nearly as much money as I might be tempted to.
I love Christmas in-game and in real life. I get to enjoy some relaxed time with family and friends. It's also that time of year to think of others. I have one holiday challenge for everyone today. While it's fun to stock up on loot, try spreading your wings some. Real people from all over the world play these games with you. They aren't solo endeavors, even if that's how you play the game. Give your loot away one day. Spread some cheer. The game will still be there tomorrow for you to continue to play it like you always have.
Each Monday, Jeremy Stratton delivers Lost Pages of Taborea, a column filled with guides, news, and opinions for Runes of Magic. Whether it's a community roundup for new players or an in-depth look at the Rogue/Priest combo, you'll find it all here. Send your questions to jeremy@massively.com.
