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Skyforge unveils the Gunner
The Beatles once opined that happiness is a warm gun. Skyforge's Gunner class has a warm gun that also transforms into different modes and allows the class to call down orbital strikes, so one can only conclude that it is a very happy class indeed. Its opponents are somewhat less so. You can see the class in action in the video just past the break, or you can read through the reveal page to get a better idea of how this multi-mode class will play. The cannon has three main modes as well as a variety of sub-firing options, allowing gunners to mow down targets at long range with missile barrages or take out hardened targets with bursts of plasma. Since it's meant to stay at range, the class also sports a variety of defensive tricks like teleporting back and forth. It's exactly the sort of class for you if you like having a big gun, even more so if you want that big gun to shoot all sorts of different stuff.
Final Fantasy XIV previews the Rogue and Ninja
Limsa Lominsa is a rough town. There are pirates, layabouts, and all manner of shifty people at Final Fantasy XIV's island port city. The Yellowjackets keep the order in the streets, of course, but who keeps things clean in the back alleys? Why, the dashing Rogues, of course, the subject of the newest patch 2.4 preview on the official site. They might be cutthroats, brigands, and thieves, but they've still got a city to keep in one piece. The preview also discusses Ninja, the job recently imported to Eozea from the Far East with the arrival of the Doman refugees. The preview makes it clear that both class and job will follow the usual progression for quests and gives a small slice of the flavor players can expect, but even the secondary class for Ninja is still shrouded in mystery, which is frustrating if you want to get leveling done before it goes live... but then, would you really expect the most stealthy class to give away all of its secrets?
Black Gold shows off the Geomancer
Do you like healing people? Do you like drawing strength from the land? Do you hate pants? Then Black Gold's Geomancer might just be for you. (You might have access to pants in the game, though.) The Geomancer is meant purely as a support class, focused on healing and supporting team members. While the class is weak in one-on-one combat, it excels at supporting a group and healing injuries. Many Geomancer abilities pull double-duty as they both harm nearby enemies and heal and buff nearby allies. In lore terms, the class was originally unknown to the Kosh despite their knowledge of magic, as working with Earth was problematic and required a great deal of practice. Only the great mage Damerhyn was successful, leading to the order of Geomancers that will be available to Yutonian and Kosh players in the game. For more details, take a look at the official preview page.
Pantheon explains how a wizard does it
The sad reality is that with each passing year it is less likely that a very large man will enter your life to inform you that you are, in fact, a wizard, Harry. Even more so if your name isn't Harry. So perhaps you can console yourself by playing a wizard in Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen, slinging destructive spells left and right and holding on to the last remnants of your dwindling sanity as you do so. Or perhaps not holding on to those remnants, as one of the class specialties, Frenzy, is specifically for casters who have let themselves go completely bonkers and derive power from that madness. The other specialty, Aspect, allows the wizard to maintain sanity through martial perfection, creating shrouds of mana and summoning duplicates for various functions. Take a look at the full reveal for more details on the lore and mechanics of these casters.
New class rises to join Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen
The second class revealed for Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen isn't the hero that the world of Terminus needs, but it's the one the world deserves. The Dark Knight is exactly what it sounds like on the tin: Aside from striking fear into the cowardly and superstitious lot of Terminus' monsters, it's a fusion of melee abilities and destructive spellcasting that draws upon unholy might. It's a class with plenty of toys to mix with extensive martial training, and it serves nicely as a peek at the conceptual space of Pantheon's classes. Dark Knights have access to several choices of both weapon and armor, generally focusing on heavy plate armor along with two-handed swords, shield, and axes. They also possess the ability to drain life and strength from their foes, apply diseases, summon necromantic minions, and possibly hang upside-down from gargoyles. There's a bit more lore to be found in the official reveal; keep your ears open for more classes so that you'll be properly prepared.
Take a little look at TERA's newest class
The newest class in TERA is live on the Korean servers right now, and even if you don't normally play an Elin, you might be curious to see what it's all about. That's a little more problematic if you don't speak Korean, but lucky for you there's a whole preview of the upcoming class available now on Steparu. It should give you a good idea of what to expect when this update comes out stateside. Dark Elin start at level 55 and have a variety of new skills and abilities for players to use. Embedded past the break is a preview of a Dark Elin fighting one of the game's signature BAMs, showing off the class mechanics in brief and giving an idea of what it's like to play one. Check out the video past the break, and take a look at the full preview for a more in-depth look at the class.
WildStar shows off the Warrior in its newest DevSpeak
In every game, there has to be at least one class that focuses entirely upon hitting something really hard until it stops moving, then hitting it a few more times. That's WildStar's Warrior at a glance. And no, there's really not a whole lot more to the class than that; what you see is what you get. But what you see is also a monstrously powerful technological hitting machine in heavy armor with a power sword, arm cannon, and the strength to just kick things into place when needed. No, the Warrior doesn't master magic or the like. The Warrior just has a versatile toolbox, and several tools that are very good at allowing the Warrior to survive a beating before delivering one of his own. Don't take our word for it -- check out the newest DevSpeak video past the break and watch the Warrior do his thing. It's all just smashing stuff, but it's smashing with panache. [Source: Carbine Studios press release]
Massively Exclusive: An in-depth look at Final Fantasy XI's new jobs
This year isn't quite as exciting for Final Fantasy XI as it is for Final Fantasy XIV, but it's still bringing a pretty big change to the status quo. Players have had years to get used to the game as it is, but now Seekers of Adoulin is on its way to completely rewrite matters, giving us two new jobs as well as a new region and new mechanics to deal with. In other words, it's going to be shaking things up. So while I was out in San Francisco enjoying all that Final Fantasy XIV has to offer, I also had a chance to look into Final Fantasy XI's new expansion, specifically the new player jobs. Both the Rune Fencer and the Geomancer are bringing something new to the game, and while I didn't get to play around with either job extensively, I did get to see how both will play and check out their key abilities.
Diablo III cooks up a reveal for the Witch Doctor
As the release grows closer, Diablo III continues to serve up new reveals for the game's classes. But the latest revelation is still bringing a lot of secrets along with it. After all, would you really expect the Witch Doctor not to have a few more tricks up his sleeve? Like previous classes, the good doctor gets a video showing off the class style as well as a short story and a more specific class overview. While he's fully capable of dealing straight damage, the Witch Doctor's true talents lie in subtlety and misdirection via curses, confusion, and fear. He also possesses the ability to summon creatures to act as ersatz allies, with giant toads and swarms of flaming bats compensating for his own lack of physical might. If all of this sounds like just your style, you might want to take a look at the video... but even if that's not the case, all Diablo III fans will want to take note of the first announced launch event for the game, with more to follow.
Exclusive: A preview of the Hellion in Ether Saga Online
Ether Saga Online has been quiet for a little while, but this spring, the game is gearing up for a major update which includes a brand-new race, the Mogui. Long locked away from the world, the Mogui have broken free of their confinement in the wake of the battle against the forces of Oxen Ultera. The race has two unique classes, and the team at Perfect World Entertainment has decided to start off by previewing the hot-tempered Hellion class first. Hellions are an aggressive class, wielding twin battleaxes and assaulting enemies through direct attacks and wide-range area abilities. They've also got the ability to improve their damage via sacrificing health. At level 75, a Hellion can upgrade to either a Warlord or Ruiner depending on player choice. We've got several new shots of the Hellion in action (including a distressingly happy dance) in the gallery below, which should keep Ether Saga Online players excited about what's coming with the spring update. %Gallery-65163%
Tyria Evolved: Massively's analysis of the Guild Wars 2 Guardian
Today ArenaNet has unveiled the Guild Wars 2 Guardian. After nearly a full week of wild speculation, we've finally got the details on the fifth class. Interestingly, this reveal followed a similar pattern as the Necromancer reveal in that by the time today's details arrived, it was a surprise to exactly nobody. The Guardian had been revealed after a fashion in Edge of Destiny, then leaked by PC Gamer last week. In the ensuing fan frenzy, Regina Buenaobra stepped in to announce that the full reveal would happen on the 27th. Now that we've finally got the full scoop on the Guardian, follow along after the jump and take a look!
Exclusive: A look at RIFT's Saboteur
You can call them rogues, thieves, scoundrels, but by any name they're stealthy little bastards. RIFT's Rogues are no exception, with the difference being that the soul system allows them access to several unique flavors of sneaky little bastard. There are the backstabbing Assassins, the sniping Marksmen, and the defensive Riftstalker all under the same overarching aegis, allowing players a wide variety of different options. But none of them yet has been the truly annoying sort, the one who looks to be finally caught flat-footed just as you realize he's been playing you the whole time. Rounding off a week of new soul previews is the Saboteur -- and while it might seem a bit less glamorous to come last, that's exactly how the Saboteur would want it. An expert in preparation and subtle traps, the Saboteur is vulnerable without time to prepare his various battlefield modifications, but immensely destructive if he's in control. Click on past the break for more backstory and information on RIFT's resident schemer. %Gallery-101448%
Exclusive: A look at RIFT's Dominator
Mages in RIFT are not particularly nice people. Admittedly, that's not speaking to their character so much as the souls available to them, but between the corpse-raising Necromancers, entropy-spreading Warlocks, and strength-leeching Archons, the precedent has been set. And today's reveal of the Dominator isn't going to change that image, even though it's a soul quite likely to make a number of new friends. But those friends may or may not be willing companions. A mind is a terrible thing to waste, even if you have little to no intention of letting your opponent use it. That's the Dominator philosophy in a nutshell, with a number of abilities designed to confuse, terrify, and control opponents. Although physically fragile, the Dominator will hopefully be in a position where none of his opponents are still coherent enough to take advantage of physical weakness. Take a look at more lore and ability details on RIFT's latest soul past the break, and check back tomorrow for our last soul reveal. %Gallery-101448%
Exclusive: A look at RIFT's Void Knight
Magic is a fact of life in any sort of fantasy setting, and RIFT is no exception to this. The Warrior, of course, is the last class you'd expect to be dabbling heavily in magic, an assumption that would be largely correct. But with the plethora of souls available to characters in the game, it seems nigh-on inevitable that a Warrior would have at least one option if he wanted to ensure his opponent was just as bereft of magic, to even the footing down to a contest of arms. And the Void Knight is precisely that. The Void Knight isn't just capable of enduring magical attacks -- he actively absorbs them, using them to power his most spectacular abilities. Although he's not up to a straight contest of arms against a non-magical character, he's more than the equal of a caster, easily capable of turning the most devastating curses or enchantments into the equivalent of an energy drink. Take a look past the break for the full rundown on both the lore and abilities of the Void Knight, and check back each day this week for another new RIFT soul reveal. %Gallery-101448%
Exclusive: A look at RIFT's Druid
Within RIFT's soul system, there's room for a wide variety of different classes within the four core options -- two different Clerics might have very different sets of souls equipped and play like two completely different classes. Trion Worlds has been slowly providing information to players about what they can expect from the various souls, but every time a new soul is revealed, it's something completely different from what's come before. The Druid is one of the souls available to Clerics, for instance, but it couldn't be more different than options such as the Purifier or Sentinel. Druids are a pet class, but not in the traditional sense. Where a Mage with a pet-using soul would rely on his pets to deal damage, the Druid uses her pets as conduits to empower her, making her a fierce combatant in her own right. Although vulnerable if her companions are damaged, the Druid herself is the core of her strength, using a variety of companions for a multitude of effects. Click past the break for more information and backstory on RIFT's Druid, and check in every day this week for more heretofore unseen souls. %Gallery-101448%
Forsaken World details protector class
Hot on the stiletto heels of their assassin and vampire spotlights, Perfect World Entertainment brings us a brand new Forsaken World class preview focusing on the protector. According to the game's official blog, protectors are "nine feet tall, carry hammers the size of people, and are regularly seen carrying dwarves on their shoulders." Dwarf-tossing references and subtlety-related snarkiness aside, the protectors serve as Forsaken World's tanking class, complete with the usual amenities such as aggro-building taunts and very large pieces of armor. Protectors also make use of a special ability called fury, which gradually charges up over the course of a fight. Theoretically, protectors grow stronger and more dangerous the longer the fight continues. To learn more about the protector class, head over to the class preview at the official Forsaken World blog.
The Road to Mordor: Putting the "lass" back in "class"
With the not-so-recent NDA lift on the beta, LotRO players are fast at work discussing, analyzing, dissecting and pouring over all of the information coming from testers. Like a double Shire rainbow, the main question on everyone's lips is, "What does it mean?" We want to know how this is going to impact us, our future, and our gameplay, and the massive scope of this change is both unsettling and heady. Last week we sifted through the LotRO forums for testimonies about several aspects of the beta, which was treated with a stony silence from the lot of you. Oh, I kid! Nothing gets the tongues wagging around here like a good mouthful of free-to-play, although I've been informed by the leaders of the Global Conspiracy Against Gamers Having Fun that this topic has three days left on the clock until it's locked away in a vault forever. So even though I tried to touch on the relevant points of the beta last week, there's simply so much of it out there that I had to leave some behind. It's easy to forget that this fall's update contains more than the LotRO store, like a whole barrel of additions and fixes to the game -- including class tweaks. Grab my hobbity hand, and we will venture into the land of the unknown... the land of class changes.
Arcane Brilliance: Great balls of fire
It's time again for Arcane Brilliance, the weekly mage column that asks the question: Which balls are the best? The answer, of course, is also provided by Arcane Brilliance: balls of fire. Balls of fire are the best. Wait, what kind of balls were you thinking about? That's pretty gross. But Arcane Brilliance likes where your head is. When the Cataclysm class previews were announced by Blizzard lo those many months ago, my initial reactions were a decidedly mixed bag. Arcane scared the crap out of me. Mana Adept? It took several weeks and many hours of therapy before I could envision any sort of scenario in which that idea didn't sound like a terrible, terrible idea. Frost struck me as kind of meh. I gradually became more excited after I thought about it for a while, but Deathfrost and Wall of Fog simply weren't all that thrilling as initial concepts. Fire, on the other hand, sounded awesome. A giant ball of conjured flame that travels along a set path, sending out tendrils of destruction that incinerate anything in its path? Sexy.
Arcane Brilliance: I hope for an icy apocalypse
It's time again for Arcane Brilliance, the weekly mage column that has, for well over two years now, been your one-stop source for mage-love and warlock-hate. Which, of course, made it pretty much inevitable that you all would vote that I roll a warlock by such a hilariously high percentage in Friday's Choose My Adventure poll. Jerks. Just know: it may not be all that fun to watch me repeatedly drown myself or run naked into crowds of high-level mobs. Or ... maybe it will be. So, I don't know if you saw this, but I found it a little depressing. It's a collection of DPS data from the current endgame of WoW, Icecrown Citadel 25-man. And while fire and arcane mages appear to be right up there in the mix, frost is not. Instead, they're relegated to the same marginal, fringe PvE status that other under-represented specs enjoy, like subtlety rogues, or beastmaster hunters. It seems that not only were the few frost mages whose data made its way into those World of Logs parses doing some pretty woeful DPS, but so few of them were actually going into Icecrown that the data we do have is rendered completely unreliable. Maybe they weren't all that bad? It's tough to tell when there were sometimes less than 50 frost mage results. Even low-representation specs like arms warriors had thousands. This, my friends, is unacceptable. Frost mages, while kings of the PvP hill, have long been the redheaded stepchildren of mage specs when it comes to PvE content. Still, they've seen multiple recent changes to their spec that have promised to narrow the gap, and to a large extent, those changes have made something of a difference. Frost isn't by any means up to the same same level as arcane and fire yet, but in terms of raw DPS output, the gulf is narrowing. Sadly, it seems nobody has noticed. Now, I'm not blaming frost mages. I expect that a large and unsavory part of the problem is not frost mages failing to go to Icecrown or failing to perform well when they do go, but is instead a failure of Icecrown groups to allow frost mages to go. The stigma against frost is ancient, its taint deep. I have all but given up on this changing during this expansion.
Cataclysm Class Changes: Protection paladin analysis
While the above was the most-looked-forward-to possible change in Cataclysm, we still didn't get it. Hopefully, the developers will come to their senses and change this horrible oversight on their behalf, but until then we are perfectly happy with just adding the tauren to our list of Light-touched brethren. Yesterday, the paladin class previews brought us a brief glimpse of things to come. Some of them were expected, while others were a little more out there. Overall, I think there will be a lot of tweaking to the class as a whole in the coming expansion. We're going to see more defenses removed from our brothers and sisters in the other specs as well as having some of their tools become available to us. Let's take a look at some of these changes after the break.
