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Developer spotlight falls on Brandan McDonald at EQ2Players
EQ2Players has continued their developer spotlight series, this time interviewing Brandan McDonald. McDonald works on modeling the environments and buildings in EverQuest II, and you can see examples of his work in zones like the Fens of Nathsar, Greater and Lesser Faydarks, and the Emerald Halls.The interview sees McDonald answer questions about how he joined the EQII team, what he is currently working on at SOE, what he does outside of work, and he even tells the story behind his cushy executive chair. On the important "pirates or ninjas?" query, he sides with the scurvy sea-dogs, but that's not surprising considering this week's launch of SOE MMO Pirates of the Burning Sea. Check out the full interview at EQ2Players.
Latest patch update notes released for EQ2 Test server
The latest patch notes for EverQuest II's Test server are here, and the full list is available after the jump, but we'll do a little break-down of some of the bigger and more general changes on this side of the fence. It looks like the Avatars of the Gods have bolstered their ranks with a few late-to-the-party ringers, The Tribunal, Karana, and Bertoxxolous. Tradeskillers will now also be able to provide players with mannequins that can display armor and weapons in their home.While we're on the tradeskill front, the crafting-inclined will be pleased to hear that there is a new quest available for level 30 or higher tradeskillers that have already completed the first quest, Journeyman Service. As well as this, tradeskill societies are offering a new recipe book to those that they regard warmly, and rare pelts that are looted from chests will now stack with those that are harvested -- but existing pelts probably won't have this property, so use up your old ones first. The patch also seems to have given pets a boot up the backside, as they will now have an easier time keeping up with their owners when traveling. Finally, a connection stats window has been added to the user interface, and can tell you your ping, bytes per second, frames per second and packet loss. The toggle for this window is mapped to F11 by default.Along with all of this, there are some spell, zone and quest, and item changes that are fairly specific, and they can be found after the break with the entire patch notes, and keep in mind that this applies to the Test server only for now.
"Double Threat" LoN tournament this weekend promises in-game loot card
EQ2Players has details on an upcoming tournament that will take place this weekend for Legends of Norrath. Entrants will not only receive a promotional card of the infamous Mayong Mistmoore, but will also get to choose between two loot cards. The EverQuest card gives a Bridle of the Viridian Cragslither, and the EverQuest II reward is a Cloak of Di'Zok.The tournament kicks off at 7AM PST on January 19th, and will end at 9PM PST on January 20th. There will be an entry fee of 10 Event Passes and on top of the special rewards, each player will receive a minimum of 3 booster packs, depending on how high they place. Unfortunately, it seems that the tournament is only open to U.S. residents.
Legends of Norrath promotion this weekend brings increased drop rates and two unique cards
Players of EverQuest and EverQuest II will be treated to a Legends of Norrath promotion this weekend that promises an increased chance to find packs of cards on defeated enemies, and amongst these you may find one of two brand new cards, one of which is the tasty little fellow you see pictured here.The weekend officially commences at 2pm PST on Friday, and you can enjoy the enhanced drop rates and hunt for the unique cards up until 11:59 PST on Sunday the 6th. Even if you're not into LoN, the dropped card packs also sell pretty well from what I have seen, so it's a win-win for players of EQ/EQII and Legends of Norrath. Now go get that delicious chocolate gobbo.
Tradeskill developer for EQII Emily "Domino" Taylor chats about her role
Tradeskill developer for EverQuest II Emily Taylor (better known to the community as "Domino") was recently interviewed by The Tairise Tribune. Anyone who has ever read the official EQII tradeskill forums will more than likely have seen a post by Domino, or a reply to a player's question, or a hint about upcoming content and changes -- in truth, her level of interaction with the community is amazing, and it's nice to see people's feedback and suggestions being acknowledged by the person who calls the shots.in the interview, Domino discusses her role with SOE and EQII, working with her team on deadlines (such as the huge amount of new content required for Rise of Kunark) and how working with gaming industry "celebrities" has been far more rewarding for her than meeting the Hollywood celebrities that she did in her former job. It also appears that she isn't above a little real-life tradeskilling too, as she mentions that she has recently been constructing Weighted Companion Cubes inspired by Valve's hit game Portal. Check out the full interview for more from Domino.[Via EQ2Players]
Be a voyeur and check out the Frostfell decorations in houses around Norrath
You won't need your binoculars to spy on the neighbours this time around, as citizens of Norrath have opened their doors to the public to let everyone take a gander at Frostfell's unique decorations being put to use. Even before the holiday furniture and decorations had been made live on regular EverQuest II servers, we were able to see what it all looked like courtesy of EQ2 Traders on Test, but this collection of shots at EQ2 Players shows off the different ways in which people have arranged and designed their festive displays in their own in-game housing.Each stunning setup is accompanied by the responsible player's name and server, and there are 28 shots available for browsing. If checking out these screenshots leaves you wanting to pimp out your own crib, it's worth nothing that EQ2 Traders have updated their list of Frostfell furniture to help you decide what belongs in your own holiday-themed exhibit.
CBS8 features EQ2 and Frostfell
CBS8 News in San Diego recently took a visit to Sony Online Entertainment's offices, where a reporter was taken through EverQuest II character creation and visited the Frostfell Wonderland Village. It's a fairly lighthearted report, and we're told inaccurately that the game is "played by millions worldwide", but it's nice to see games in the media occasionally without the attached list of associated behavioral problems, or a death tally.The story is taken from a hugely mainstream perspective, with no real details about the game being given at all, but you do catch glimpses of the Frostfell holiday event. The report was done to present EQ2 as a holiday gift idea, so I suppose it's wrong to expect a meaty and thorough piece -- as one of SOE's representatives tells the reporter in the video, "Jeff, you're a newb. You're a newbie."[Via Cuppytalk]
SOE President crushes EQ2 / Live Gamer speculation
This past weekend, Sony Online Entertainment's Grand Poobah, alias John Smedley, was out and about dousing the fires and dismissed SOE's alleged takeover by Zapak. (SOE had for a measly 300 million? What a crock.) During his flurry, Smedley also dispelled the crazy speculation talk regarding SOE's new partnership with Live Gamer over on the lovable EQ2 Flames. After the initial announcement regarding the two joining forces; the hysteria pot stirred yet again. The biggest concern was that the grey-market service would intrude on EQ2's non-Station Exchange servers."We aren't going to be allowing RMT in any way, shape or form on the non-exchange enabled EQ II servers. Period. End of statement. If we catch people, we ban them and have been for a long time now. The truth of the matter is it's very difficult to combat them, but we have people at SOE who fight the good fight each and every day. In the near future you're going to see us becoming a lot more public about this then we ever have been. I think we've done a bad job at communicating just how seriously we take this fight.We're interested in working with LiveGamer because they are unique in the RMT world due to the fact that they are pledging (and are putting technology behind it) to not buy from farmers. Farmers are the bane of our existence at SOE. They cause us endless amounts of grief and do real financial damage in a meaningful way."
Bruce Ferguson on EQII's Epic Weapon quests
Like many EverQuest II players, you may have been disappointed to learn that the Epic quests were not being released alongside the Rise of Kunark expansion as was originally planned. Now-former senior producer for EQII Scott Hartsman let the community know that this was due to the San Diego fires, but Clockwork Gamer recently had an interview with Hartsman's successor Bruce Ferguson who was able to tell us a little more about the Epic quests.Among other things, we find out that the Epic quests should be released together, as opposed to be rolled out for different classes at different times. They will all be weapons (no shields, armor or anything like that) and most of the effects on these weapons will be unique to the Epics. Ferguson also says that Game Update 42 will introduce a feature that lets you display items in your house without changing them into something else, by putting them in a display case.Follow the related story link to read the full interview at Clockwork Gamer.
Senior producer for EverQuest II Bruce "Froech" Ferguson interviewed
Now that Scott Hartsman has stepped down as senior producer for EverQuest II, the folks at EQ2 Players decided to interview his replacement, Bruce "Froech" Ferguson. Ferguson is no newbie to EQII, and his appointment to senior producer marks his return to the game after spending a few years as a project manager for Sony Online Entertainment in general.In the interview, we find out about his feelings on returning to EQII, what exactly the position of senior producer entails, his gaming background, the future of EQII, and some other fun stuff. The interview is also available in audio form, so if your tired eyes need a rest from a hard day prowling the internets, you can let your ears take over for a bit -- otherwise, follow the related story link for the full interview.
SOE caught red-handed: EQ2 Player / Dev relationship breached ethical boundaries
Several days ago Massively reported that EQ2 Flames administrator broke the story on a scandal that regards numerous members from Unhallowed Triad, a guild on EQ2's Test server that was transferred to Unrest, a Live server through an inside connection at SOE. Character transfers from the Test server to a Live one is not allowed and against current SOE transfer policy; albeit, the EULA has a clause that SOE may change this policy at any time. However, the case is made that a Player / Dev affiliation has led to corruption, leaving many infuriated players with lots of unanswered questions as seen in these two threadnaughts. To recap for those not following this closely or wanting to sift through 100+ pages on the forums: SOE employee(s) abused their power breaking various codes of ethics (confirmed & guilty) Numerous Test players accuse Unhallowed Triad with a history of exploitation and getting away with it in due part to their SOE connection (rumors) Someone at SOE made the call to transfer Test characters to a Live server breaking policy (confirmed & guilty) Not only were characters transferred to Unrest, but items as well. Unhallowed Triad's Guild level was also inflated to 60. (confirmed & guilty) Many Unhallowed Triad guild members admitted to transferring off test in Assassin's chat (confirmed) Several Unhallowed Triad guild members were transferred unknowingly (more than likely) Legitimately leveled characters belonging to several Unhallowed Triad members were transferred over from other servers or already leveled on the Unrest server (confirmed) Unhallowed Triad guild tag no longer exists but there other guild tag Unholy Trinity exists and their Guild level stands at 30 (confirmed) All players on the Test server have not been given the same opportunity to transfer to a Live server The evidence found via EQ2 Players alone is overwhelming. So much so that it's impossible to sweep all the allegations under-the-rug. Initially, SOE was quick to react as both Alan "Brenlo" Crosby, Director of Global Community Relations and Bruce "Froech" Ferguson, EQ2's new Senior Producer admitted to SOE's involvement. Well, rather that someone at SOE made the call to override the policy, but in a good natured manner to reward certain players for their hard work on the Test server. Not a smart choice of words or tone given EQ2 players warranted concerns. In any case, Ferguson claims the transferred characters will be removed. Since their initial statements and response there has been no further word from a SOE representative on this matter.
Rumor: Entire guild Unhallowed Triad moved from EQ2 Test Server to live
A thread on popular forums EQ2Flames is asserting that a guild from the EverQuest II Test Server, Unhallowed Triad, has been moved over to the live server Unrest. This is something that SOE had said would never happen, due to the doubled experience gain on Test making it unfair on live players. The poster also claims that there was a GM account in the guild that assisted them in killing things that they could not take down on their own, in order to obtain some of the best gear in the game.
Save Santug this Frostfell with Legends of Norrath
SoE is really keeping Legends of Norrath players busy, with all of the special events as of late, and today we've learned of yet another. LoN is getting involved in the Frostfell fun with the "Saving Santug" promotion. Players are tasked with defeating the mean Grinnuch to free Santug Claugg. Although anyone would surely save poor old Santug out of the goodness of their heart, you'll be rewarded for your efforts with Santug's own promotional card.As well as the Grinnuch event, any participant in a Holiday Bonus Tournament will get a Santug's Stocking pack that includes items randomly selected from a list (full list after the break), and not all of these items are in-game -- you can score yourself a Legends of Norrath poster, or one of five framed and signed sets of the Jim Lee Oathbound cards. The winner of the each Holiday Bonus Tournament will get a foil version of one of three Santug Claugg promotion cards, one of which is a Lump of Coal with no stats -- nice.On top of all this, log in on the 25th of December for an extra special stocking stuffer surprise. The Saving Santug promotion will bring Frostfell cheer to LoN players from December 21st through January 2nd.
EQ2 community zone reviews: Runnyeye
The EQ2 Players site hosts a player-written review of one of EverQuest II's zones every week, and this week the focus is the goblin dungeon Runnyeye. Player Xalmat of the Permafrost server shares his knowledge of the zone, including the basics like how to get there and what level you should be to visit, to a detailed and lengthy rundown of strategies to use when moving through the zone, and even a handy list of some named mobs to look out for.
New loot cards revealed for Legends of Norrath expansion Forsworn
Last month we reported on a new expansion for Legends of Norrath by the name of Forsworn. We now know that Forsworn will be released on the 19th of December, and leading up to this date, the EQ2players site is showing off the loot cards that the expansion will bring for both EverQuest and EverQuest II.The feature shows off every loot card, including this sexy pale rhino mount, that will be introduced, 44 in total split evenly between EQ1 and EQ2. As a reminder of some other major features being brought to LoN in Forsworn, there will be 2 on 2 multiplayer, raids involving a group of players bringing their decks and taking on an NPC boss together, and some new single player scenarios. If you want to brush up your skills prior to the expansion, or beef up your card library, there is a tournament going that offers some special cards and booster pack prizes -- but it's only for this weekend, so hurry along if you want to be involved.
Game Update 41 available on EQ2 Test Server
It's the time of year again where EverQuest II's Norrathian residents prepare to celebrate Frostfell, and the Gibblegibbers make their rounds of the major cities to offer quests and presents for the holidays. If you simply can't wait to get in to the Frostfell content, then you don't have to -- Game Update 41 has gone live on the test server, and Frostfell, among other updates, is in full swing.Apart from the Gibblegibbers, the update allows you to visit the Frostfell Wonderland Village to craft presents, do more holiday-themed quests and purchase Frostfell items. Gardy Giftgiver, the famous Frostfell elf, also makes a return and will provide one gift each day per character.It's not all Frostfell with Game Update 41 though, and there is a large list of changes and fixes in the test notes. It looks like there are a lot of important things on the list, too many to comment on them all, but here's a few: the Sarnak language primer can now be purchased, lava damage can be resisted, Exquisite Chests will always contain a Fabled item, Armorers and Tailors can make better Mastercrafted armor at all levels, and you can harvest while being attacked again. Phew! The rest of the exhausting list of updates has been posted after the break for your convenience.
Firiona Vie tournament this weekend for Legends of Norrath
EQ2Players informs us of yet another Legends of Norrath tournament this weekend. The theme this time around is Firiona Vie, and every participant in the weekend's tournaments will receive the Firiona Vie, Guardian of Growth card. Everyone will also get a choice between two different loot cards, one for EverQuest and the other EverQuest II, and each of those result in a shapeshift illusion item that buffs the player with a damage shield.The tournament begins at 7:00AM PST on Saturday and concludes at 9:00PM PST on Sunday. The overall winner will get 9 Oathbound booster packs, and the other top-ranking entrants will get between 8 and 4, but everyone who enters will receive 3 packs. So in the end, everyone will get at the minimum 3 booster packs, the Firiona Vie card, and their choice of one of two loot cards -- just for participating. Not too shabby. The fee for entering this contest is 10 event passes.
EQ2: RoK's screwy itemization to result in upcoming nerfs
I guess the leveling and itemization EQ2 devs cranked up the ez-mode a little too far, and completely spaced off during RoK's beta phase. Fyreflyte, dev extraordinaire, popped by the official EQ2 boards yesterday to deliver the news that a rather large tune (nerf) is in-store for the effects found on Rise of Kunark's Treasured items, such as Overflow and Divine Restoration. The reason given for the upcoming nerfs is that while effects will automatically scale down on lower quality gear, given how easy it is to acquire these items they did not scale down enough resulting in a huge imbalance as these effects were intended for Legendary quality gear and not Treasured. O'rly? The stats on the items will remain the same, but the effects power will subside by at least 1/3 in some cases. Swinging the ole' nerf bat on items doesn't end there as the four rewards from the Anaphylaxis quest will be nerfed from Fabled to Legendary quality. Don't you love the pleasantries like "hotfix" and "tune" that MMOG developers like to use today? I call it like I see it. Nerfs stink even when they are an evil necessary, but the devs blundered this one to the Ruins of Kunark and back. This should have never happened, but it did, and even the non-loot whores get to pay for it. What about all those players that replaced all their old gear with? This nerf is going to affect a lot of players.
Does Rise of Kunark offer enough to keep people playing down the track?
The question was raised by Ogrebear, in an article entitled "Rise of Kunark will hurt EQ2 in the long run": are the hardcore players burning through the EverQuest II expansion's content a little too fast? Of course, you always expect there to be a fraction of the player base that will race through a new expansion, hit the level cap together with their guild and storm the premier raid content. However, Ogrebear notes that some top guilds have already finished all but one of the raid zones -- meaning six other raid zones have been fully cleaned out. Surely the one remaining raid zone will not keep these people occupied until the next expansion?There will undoubtedly be content updates along the way, but for the core gameplay of this major expansion to have already been busted wide open comes as a bit of a surprise. Perhaps the last remaining raid dungeon, Veeshan's Peak, will be dramatically more difficult to conquer. But even still, how long will players be able to stand being stuck in the same dungeon if it is tuned to be stretched out so long? The average player is going to be well behind this curve, but with the speed at which everything has been trailblazed so far, the most obvious conclusion is that the raid content has simply been made easier than we've come to expect.
Everquest I and II expansions launch today
For those inhabiting swank digs under rocks, or those uninitiated in the ways of the Everquest, you may not realize that two major expansions launched today: EQI: Secrets of Faydwer and EQII: Rise of Kunark. We've been following both expansions extensively, so thought we'd round up some of the more notable features for those about to Everquest (we, of course, salute you): Beta tours Everquest Secrets of Faydwer beta tour Everquest II Rise of Kunark beta tour Guides Sarnak starter quest guide Sarnak character creation how-to Rise of Kunark mega information link overload Video Sarnak character creation how-to Sarnak dance movie Sarnak fire breathing movie Galleries Secrets of Fawydwer gallery Rise of Kunark gallery Sarnak starter guide gallery %Gallery-9857%%Gallery-9771%%Gallery-10174%
