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Tabula Rasa crafting made easier with disassembly chart
One of the most bewildering aspects of Tabula Rasa (and believe me, there are many) is the almost inexplicably difficult crafting system, which not only turns out weapon modifications that are close to useless in combat, but also requires a style of component micro-management that borders on the insane. Part of the problem is that the only way to get most components is by breaking down other weapons, with no clear guide as to what parts you can expect to get out of the deal. So for most people, you end up with a footlocker full of strange-sounding parts, and somehow still end up without the parts you need to fill those recipes.Alpha Wolf Wonderlus over at Tabula Rasa Vault has done us all an enormous favor by posting a disassembled item chart that shows what sort of components you're liable to get from a weapon with a given modification. It's still only a matter of probability whether you'll get a certain item, but it's good to know where to start looking if you've got a specific modification in mind.This will come in handy if I ever make it to level 50 and make a crafting clone, which is just about the only time that crafting in Tabula Rasa is viable. Since crafting talent points are drawn from the same pool as combat abilities, most people don't bother trying crafting until after level 30, when it becomes possible to make a clone with all the crafting talents maxed out. Still, it's neat!
Forum fun: you can't always get what you want
When it comes to MMOs, change is inevitable. Every conscious decision that the developers make in response to player feedback is liable to affect the game in a number of important, though quite often unforeseen ways. When Destination Games acknowledged that they were going to tweak the effects of health and armor in Tabula Rasa's patch 1.4, most people (including yours truly) assumed that bumping up health relative to armor would have the positive effect of encouraging a larger role for Tabula Rasa's underutilized healing classes. And while experimentation on the public test server has shown that this has largely come to fruition, it has not come without its side-effects. The TR crew also opted to make similar changes in the health/armor to Tabula Rasa's enemies, and a large segment of the community has made the case that this has slowed the pace of the combat on the PTS considerably. Tabula Rasa's combat, driven in large part by the brain power of designer Paul Sage, was the one area of the game that most people agreed was an unmitigated success. Even playing solo, players get to feel like Rambo (more Rambo IV in this case than the first one) as they use high tech weaponry to pew pew wave upon wave of enemies. Reports from the PTS, confirmed by this blogger, show that the average engagement has increased by several seconds. Moreover, fights with multiple enemies (which are really the combat du jour) are made even more difficult by enhanced armor regeneration for humanoid enemies.Sadly, there isn't much for players to do but bitch. And bitching alone won't fill the content gap from 30 to 50!
Tabula Rasa takes the unbeaten path
The guys over at Destination Games want you to know that even though most game developers release large content patches over three-to-four month periods, that's not how they plan their patch process to go down. Apparently they don't see much of a point in keeping finished content from their players while continuing to work on new content. Destination Games says their goal is to create a sense of an ever-evolving game where content is delivered to players as soon as it's done. So what does this mean for Tabula Rasa players? It means smaller -- yet more frequent -- builds that deliver new content, features and whatever else the developers can conjure up.Beyond talking about update schedules, this week's feedback friday touches on the status of the 1.4 patch. It sounds like the patch is nearing its final stages with only a few bugs left to iron out. The word is that players can expect one more pass on the test server before the patch hits the live servers. On the subject of the 1.4 patch, clones in Tabula Rasa will now come with reset skill and attribute points. Although players will not have the option of completely changing their character class.Server transfers are brought up, but Destination Games says that it's something on their "do-to list" and not scheduled for the upcoming patch. We'll be interested to see how this higher frequency patch schedule plays out in the future for Tabula Rasa and its subscribers.
NCsoft ramping up TR community interaction
If you jump around the greater MMO web community as much as I do, you might have noticed the recent deluge of threads started by NCsoft community representatives across many of the major Tabula Rasa forum communities. While little has come of the threads so far (to be fair, most were posted around noon EST yesterday, so it's early yet), most players seem excited at the prospect of even greater interaction with the Tabula Rasa development team. And that's what they're promising. Kagasumi is the only NCsoft "Ambassador" we've spotted so far, and though he is only a lowly QA Tester, he has apparently been tasked with being the initial line of contact between players and the design team, with additional staff to follow.Gaging from the responses, the most productive discussion at this point can be had in the thread over at Planet TR. Kagasumi actually acknowledges and responds to a number of player suggestions. The drama is mercifully low and the number of good ideas is actually pretty high. It's promising, although it's this kind of effort that originally had us questioning the decision that led to Tabula Rasa going without official forums in the first place. Tabula Rasa's online community is extremely diffuse, so these sorts of feedback-gathering exercises require a good deal more effort than they might have otherwise. Still, we're excited to see what, if anything, comes of this.
TR mission designer elucidates Fault Lever instance
Ever wish you could pick the brain of the guy who developed your favorite instance? Whether you hate his work or you love it, sometimes the rationale that goes into a level on the developer side is just completely lost on players. In the case of Tabula Rasa's new end-game instance Fault Lever, this is not a concern players will have to ponder for long. RPG Vault has a guide to the as-yet-unreleased instance replete with commentary by David Fargo, the World Builder who brought the whole kit and caboodle together. (What a cool job title, by the way. What does your boyfriend do? Oh, he builds worlds.) After reading the thing over, it really seems like David had a good idea. He explains how the "story" of the instance is primarily in the details, and those are the things he likes to expound upon the most. In the case of Fault Lever, it's a Bane encampment under siege by the ground-dwelling Atta. The premise is that this base houses some of the Bane upper brass, in deeply hostile territory, only managing to keep the Atta at bay by blasting the ground with gigantic hammers. The player's role is to destroy the generators powering these hammers, and in so doing seal the fate of the Bane enemies within. While I like the idea of an instance where your primary goal is to turn two of your enemies against each other, I can't help but cringe at the thought of another underground instance. Is it really too much to have more instances where I can see the bloody sky? I already miss out on it in real life because I'm at work all day, do I really want to come home and go spelunking in my fantasy worlds too?
Seeing Tabula Rasa's future
I've spent a fair amount of time on the Tabula Rasa public test server over the last few days trying to score me some of that sweet "Charcoal Colored Armor Dye" being given away during Test Fest '08. I've also experienced some of the things that will be coming in the next patch (1.4), which I could blither on about... but why bother when the gang over at Ten Ten Hammer has already done the grunt work?In their latest report from the front line entitled, Testing the Future, Tony "RadarX" Jones breaks down the slew of new goodies that will drop, including the the much heralded Hybrids. Since this particular topic has been talked to death already, I'll just add that I have in fact seen a few. They're ugly. But I can't wait to give them a whirl. They may be ugly, but they're new! Equally intriguing are all the other changes and tweaks to armor, ammo, attributes, shield extender, hacker skills and the oddly worded "Game balance has been adjusted to be slightly easier at all levels (higher character survivability) and significantly easier at higher levels."Aside from the obvious game balance adjustment, which frankly I don't feel the game needs (at least at the lower levels I'm participating at), the biggest areas of concern for me are the "Three A's" (armor, ammo attributes). Last night while attempting to take over the Pravus Research Center with my level 15 Ranger (solo) I noticed a distinct change in armor absorption. The absorption rate seemed seriously degraded, but I didn't seem to die any quicker. This was likely due to the changes with a player's Attributes. Body, Mind, and Spirit will now provide bonuses! Body improves max absorption, Mind improves Logos damage, while Spirit gives a better chance to Critical Hit. Ammunition changes weren't immediately noticeable aside from being able to use standard canister ammo for my chain gun instead of just standard cartridge ammo.All in all... good stuff. Read the whole report to get all the juicy details.
Charcoal is the new black: Test Fest '08 details
As they promised last week, the Tabula Rasa community crew has finally released the details for Test Fest '08, their new promotion to encourage players to take an active role in keeping TR bug free. Starting January 21 (that's today) through January 28, any player with an active account who logs two or more hours on the public test server will receive 10x "Charcoal Colored Armor Dye" on February 14. Gamers as a group probably have more angst per capita than the general population, and the concurrent desire for black digs has gone unmet so far by Destination Games. There's no black armor dye of any sort in the game right now; it's mostly a mixture of horrible looking pastels and bright fluorescent colors. Now, why they would choose to give us the black armor dye on Valentine's Day of all days is beyond me, but sometimes it's better not to ask questions and take the goodies when somebody offers them to you.As an amusing aside, it's interesting to note how what was previously referred to as "Black Armor Dye" in the official materials has undergone a sudden shift to being referred to as "Charcoal Colored Armor Dye." Methinks somebody over at the Tabula Rasa team realized what a horrible faux pas it was to have an announcement for "black" armor dye on Martin Luther King Day, of all days. This is further supported by the fact that they sort of buried the announcement within the Weekend Wrapup. What was once a big exciting promotion is now a one sentence blurb hidden amongst other smaller announcements. Oops!
TR alien hybrids beaten with ugly stick, have good personalities
One of the more shocking changes made when Destination Games announced the patch notes for Tabula Rasa 1.4 was the inclusion of inclusion of alien hybrids. After completing certain quest lines, players could gain the ability to splice alien DNA into any of their future clones, and are even given an extra clone credit to boot. These clones not only assume base attributes befitting their new alien heritage, they also gain the unseemly looks of the extra-terrestrial forebears. Most of the bigger TR forum communities have threads on the topic, with players having plowed through and gained access to the clones on the public test server nearly as quickly as it was announced. The Planet TR forum's overall write-up is probably the most thorough, but the image to the right was pulled from Gangrel's Unofficial forums.That ugly beasty, winner of the Miss Arieki hybrid beauty pageant, is a Thrax hybrid, and is the result of splicing in the DNA of enemy troops. The other hybrids are considerably less offensive looking, and I would go as far as to say the Foreans might even look pretty cool. Many players, and I count myself amongst them, had been complaining because there weren't enough character customization options, and while turning myself into a horrifying mutant wasn't exactly what I had in mind, it's certainly a start. The problem is that there are only a couple versions of these hybrid faces, so the problem isn't really solved in the long run. It's still amusing though, and it'll be interesting to see how many people make the leap when the patch goes live.
Tabula Rasa Test Fest '08 starts Monday
So you fancy yourself some sort of Tabula Rasa badass? Tell me then soldier, why exactly are you sporting armor dyed "bright cyan" on top of red long underwear? It's a question that even the most brave and noble AFS soldier has had to ask him or herself at some point or another. If we're such skulking badasses, why can't we paint our armor black to put the fear of God into those remorseless Bane monsters? Why instead do we look like brightly painted easter eggs with our bold hues and lusterless pastel dyes?The answer, as it turns out, is that Destination Games has been saving that little carrot for a special promotion titled "Test Fest '08." Long-rumored, and still not fully explained, Test Fest '08 is going to be a contest where players will be encouraged to help in the development of Tabula Rasa by participating on the public test server. The prize, either for everybody that participates over a certain threshold or perhaps only for a select few, will be the black armor dye that players have been pining over since launch. Details are still forthcoming, but rest assured, we'll see you on the public test server!
Tabula Rasa patch notes look promising
We've been waiting for a while now, and they've been teasing for a while now, but Tabula Rasa's 1.4 patch notes are finally available for perusing on the official website. On top of the promised universal attribute respec, there's a huge list of changes (both announced and not) too long to list in this space, but we thought we could pull out a few of the ones we're most excited about: Item rarity has been changed again. Purples are now only attainable through Shared missions, blues through instance missions, and greens will be regular quest rewards. This might just fix the economy. Hybrid races have been added, allowing players to make clones with Thrax, Brann, and Forean DNA spliced in. It's not even three weeks into January and already we have our #1 wish for 2008 fulfilled! Changes to the Guardians staff abilities were implemented, upgrading their melee power and hopefully acting as their ticket out of nerfville. Health and armor have been brought closer together for both players and enemies, enhancing the importance of health and healing. Higher level enemies have had their health and armor bumped down a little bit to allow for higher player survivability. All positive changes, and all things we're looking forward to trying out on the PTS. Among the concerns we still have that aren't addressed though is the long-term viability of the game in terms of quests, crafting, and PvP, none of which are really addressed in these patch notes.
Is Tabula Rasa's leveling treadmill broken?
It's no secret that MMOs operate on a finely tuned treadmill mechanic. The game offers players a succession of small goals, each of which provide the incentive for players to continue on towards the next goal, and so forth. The sustained success of games like World of Warcraft are attributable in no small part to the game's ability to continue to string the player along with new and more interesting goals. What happens though, when a game's system of rewards begins to break down? This is the question that TTH's RadarX explores in an editorial looking at Tabula Rasa's end-game. It's hardly a new question for fans of the game (additional end-game content ranked number 2 on our New Years Tabula Rasa wishlist), but the question is becoming more urgent as casual players finally catch up to their more hardcore brethren in the ranks of the Tier 4.You'd have to believe that Destination Games is at least aware of the problem, it just becomes an issue of implementation. Looking at patch 1.4, with the announcement of a new level 50 instance, it seems evident that they're at least responding to the needs of those at the farthest end of the leveling race, but there's no immediate evidence that they're plugging in content in the middle. Probably the most promising sign was when they plugged in a whole new quest hub into the Palisades in a recent patch, but until they release the final patch notes for 1.4, we have no way of knowing whether the upper-middle level range will get the same treatment.Where I disagree with RadarX is in his assertion that enemy density and the frequency of patrols should be toned down for areas like the Mires. Part of what makes Arieki so fun the first time around is the truly war-like atmosphere it generates. It only makes sense that in such a dense war zone, there would be areas that the Bane rule with an iron fist. I don't have a problem with areas like that encouraging more group activity, because frankly, it just suits the lore a heck of a lot better. Now if they just stuck in some quests for groups to do, I might stop by bitching all together and just get back to playing.
Calling all Exobiologists, developer feedback requested
When most people sit down to think about class types in MMOs, I would wager that the majority would conjur up images of spell-tossing wizards or muscular blade-wielding warriors. Few classes in recent memory seem as unintuitive as Tabula Rasa's Exobiologist class. A biologist running around in massive battles with lasers and machine guns being fired overhead? Now that just seems silly. Or at least, until you really take a good look at it; the tier 4 abilities make it obvious that the Exobiologist is really just a high-tech hybrid version of a necromancer, able to bring corpses back to life to fight by their side.Problem is, like many of the other Specialist classes, the Exobiologist is still gimped quite a bit compared to its Soldier counterparts. As part of the promised changes to the specialist classes, the developers are reportedly calling for player feedback on the Tabula Rasa Vault forums. Take this as your opportunity to call for a boost in pet damage, and fight for your Exobiologist rights! Maybe if they got a buff I'd actually see one in action one of these days...
The sounds of Tabula Rasa's war
If you're like me (sorry) you don't usually listen to the in-game music, sounds and other audio oddities that go on in your favorite MMO. You're either TeamSpeak-ing to your guild mates about the current mission, ranting to your friends about why there' so much lag, or listening to the Rock Band of the hour - full blast. Whatever you're treating your ears to the painstaking hours of audio worked on by the development team usually goes unheard.The gang at Tabula Rasa is doing something to change that. The TR official website now has a very cool feature that let's players download actual audio files from the game - including base announcements (which are often LOL hilarious) and battle cries.So far they have five main files you can download (each contain multiple sound bites): Barks (2.3 MB - zipped MP3s) Base Announcements (1.3 MB - zipped MP3s) Funny Base Announcements (3.4 MB - zipped MP3s) Friendly Battlecries (18.9 MB - zipped MP3s) Hostile Battlecries (3.5 MB - zipped MP3s) If you're clever enough (if I can do it you can do it!) I imagine these audio clips can be used in a myriad of fun ways (i.e., ring tones, computer shut down/start up sounds, etc.). Download them and find out!
Goodies galore in Tabula Rasa Feedback Friday
Gamer goodies abound in this week's version of Tabula Rasa's Feedback Friday from the fine folks at Destination Games. There doesn't appear to be terribly much development as far as the 1.4 patch is concerned (for those were sleeping under a rock last week - they gave a little preview of the new content), beyond that they're shoring up some of the bugs before they drop the patch on the public test realm. They also announced a new /robot emote and kirin mask for the three month veteran reward, and revealed that players will find some fireworks in their packs post-patch to help celebrate the Chinese new year. Sounds fun!The biggest development this week is the announcement of Sanctus Grotto, a level 50 instance coming out later this month that will have players racing against the Bane to get to an Eloh artifact deep in the instance's bowls. They describe the instance as a "desperate race" against time, and we're hoping that this means it will actually be timed, and not just an inconsequential part of the lore. The end-game is in desperate need of being fleshed out, so the more content, the better. We'll likely hear more about this next week as 1.4 moves closer to being released on the PTR. Can't wait!
Forum fun: does Tabula Rasa's cloning system cure alt-itis?
Do you or somebody you love find yourself constantly rolling new characters? Are you infatuated with that new toon smell? Have you maxed out the number of characters in your stable on not just you main server, but on two or three other servers as well? You may just be suffering from a condition widely known as alt-itis. There's no known cure for alt-itis, but there are some experimental treatments being used in mainstream MMOs that you might be interested in hearing about.One of these, is Tabula Rasa's clone system. A discussion on the topic sprouted up on the Planet TR forums on the topic, with the OP going so far as to call the cloning system Tabula Rasa's "lady in a red dress." While I was not sufficiently persuaded that the thread wasn't just an excuse to make a Matrix reference, I think the larger discussion is a salient one. Does a cloning system like Tabula Rasa's really represent a cure for alt-itis? Some would argue that it's a boon for casual players who don't have time to level eight different characters independently to the end-game, but who want to see the content. Others would argue that Tabula Rasa's tiered system means that most cloning opportunities save you a negligible amount of playtime - after all, you only have two ways to go with a clone at level 30, you can't jump branches. It's an interesting discussion worth checking out (even if the topic has since wandered a bit).
Cassiopia to host server-wide roleplay event
Tabula Rasa's Cassiopia server will play host to a server-wide roleplay event being held by the 47th AFSEF with the intention of recapturing the Descent continent from Bane control. The objectives are to wrest all control points from the Bane and hold them for a whole hour. We're uncertain if such a thing is possible, but we wish all AFS troops our best in the coming fight for freedom. The event begins at 1800 PST (6pm PST for the military time-confused like us) and anyone interested can meet up at the Fort Virgil courtyard in front of the HQ building. In an interesting piece of news, the event is planned to be GM supported for some "surprises". Your guess is as good as ours on that one.It's great to see Destination Games supporting community events like this. Hopefully if things go well this becomes the first of many other similar GM sponsored events, because nothing keeps a community thriving more than a common goal. Actually, this would be another of our own wishes for Tabula Rasa in 2008.
TR Vault lays their cards on the table
You got to know when to hold em, know when to fold em... oh wait, wrong card game.Tabula Rasa Vault is however putting the cards on the table with something quite clever. Right now you can go over to their website, hit their Player Database, and set up your very own virtual Tabula Rasa trading card. Players can enter information about their soldier - including a name, background and picture - and it will be formated to look like a trading card. TR Vault says they'll be using this database for future contests, plus they'll be picking soldiers each week for a spotlight feature called "AFS soldier of the week." That's pretty frakkin' cool! I'm adding mine when I get home.
TTH guide to the Torden Mires
Tabula Rasa's The Mires is a zone that's messy, more than a bit laggy, and infested with Bane. It's also the staging point for most of the activity on the Torden continent. This virtual version of Hades is for characters in their upper 20's (levels 27-30). Covered with enormous mountains, raging rivers of lava, and precarious cliffs, this zone is also filled with dozens of missions, three different instances and two control points to battle over. With all that, wouldn't it be handy to have a guide? TTH's guide to the Torden Mires breaks down several of the bases and control points, gives some very helpful tips and tricks, points out what to avoid, and even provides a handy location chart for the 11 Logos abilities scattered across the continent. If you've become as obsessed with Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa as I have over the holidays, be sure to check out all of TTH's invaluable guides.
TTH AFS Field Report - Slow Week Edition
Post holiday blues got ya down? Apparently it's been a slow week for everyone as folks the universe over (including the AFS and Bane) come down off drunken eggnog stupors and fruitcake sugar rushes. Still, TenTonHammer's Tony "RadarX" Jones covers this weeks slim pickings in the Tabula Rasa universe like the Hollywood paparazzi swarm the Spears Clan.Even though we here at Massively try to keep you up to date with all the hot, breaking news you can handle... we miss some things. Take for instance this little nugget: did you know that the "crapton" (Tony's words) of reviews for Tabula Rasa (personal plug: I wrote the first world exclusive review on the day it released) seem to repeatedly compare it to World of Warcraft. Uh, excuse me? I've played WoW. I've played TR. The two are nothing alike. TR is better looking, has better game play (because it has really BIG guns!)... just kidding! TR is my pint 'o beer while WoW is not. That's why so many MMOs can exist. Not everyone has to like every game. But I digress...Check out Tony's full field report for all the details.
TTH guide to the Bane weapons facility
So you find yourself at the 30-ish level in Tabula Rasa, and you feel like hitting the scum sucking Bane right where it hurts. Try bringing down the Casso Weapons Facility then, the Bane's primary manufacturing facility for Energy Weapons. Located on the planet Arieki in the southwestern region known as the Mires, this high priority military target is especially valuable to the Bane. Going Rambo on this place will benefit the AFS for some time.But doing so ain't easy, and having the assistance of TTH's eloquent Tabula Rasa guides (in this case their Energy Weapons Center Guide) will increase the odds for success. Some of the more interesting nuggets o' knowledge in this guide include the time needed to run the instance (less than an hour, half thatif you're running with a group full of barbarians). During the mission ("It's All In the Timing") given to you by Sgt. Wolfe you'll have to time your movement through a maze of Death Star-like plasma reactors, otherwise you'll roast like a marshmallow left over an open flame too long. Once you get the timing down though, you can draw the mindless Bane in and watch them get incinerated. Good stuff!For the whole briefing be sure to check out the guide, and help put a dent in the Bane's fight against humanity!
