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One Shots: That can't be comfortable
Ah, there's nothing quite as nice after a long day of adventuring than to come back to your house, curl up, and get a good night's sleep. The only thing we'd caution against is leaving all that heavy armor on -- or worse still, one's weapon! Today's Runes of Magic shot comes to us from Abstergo, who apparently was a little too tired after a long day to bother! The note attached to this image read: "Affter a long day of work, Abstergo takes a rest on his bed. Sleeping with an axe in the back must be kind of painful, but he's a tough guy!" Hopefully he had a potion for morning back pain! If you've taken a silly screenshot of your character that you'd like to share with the rest of us, then send it in! We're always on the lookout for more. Email them in to us here at oneshots@massively.com, and be sure to include your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post it out here and give you the credit for sending it in. %Gallery-85937%
Lost Pages of Taborea: What's $15 worth?
Hello everyone! This week, Jeremy Stratton (your usual Lost Pages of Taborea host) and I are swapping columns for variety -- so thanks to Jeremy for allowing me, Beau Hindman, to take over his column for the day! I have to admit that I am relatively new to the game, never having really given my character time to grow into a proper hero. Fortunately, the game's free-to-play status allows for this type of reckless avatar growth. But how free is it? Runes of Magic is not a "freemium" game, one that literally asks for payment at some point in order to level higher or to explore new content. It's my favorite type of free-to-play: the kind that gives you the client, gives you a free house, and even loans you a mount to make early level travel much easier. Critics of free-to-play will say that most free-to-play games trick, convince, or even force players to spend large amounts of money in the cash shop in order to "succeed," often without defining what "success" means. While I admit that I play at the speed of molasses, I do maintain a few titles in which I slowly, but surely, obtain higher levels. Runes of Magic isn't one of them, yet, so I want to take a look at how much I will get for a typical subscription amount: 15 US dollars. So, how much does it buy me?
Runes of Magic Chapter III adds marriage, raises level cap
Frogster and Runewaker Entertainment have announced that Runes of Magic is adding even more content to its recent Chapter III publish, in the form of tomorrow's 3.0.3 update. The patch boasts an entirely new zone, the Northern Janost Forest, which also adds over 100 new quests to the free-to-play fantasy title. In addition to the new high-level content, the player level cap is being raised to 60. The patch is also introducing a new relationship system whereby players can bind themselves as lovers, friends, or as a master and an apprentice. Each pairing grants buffs to players when grouped with their significant others, and marriage is also possible via a wedding ring and a special chapel in the city of Varanas. Finally, Frogster is implementing a new beginner pet to ease the newbie transition into the world of Taborea. The pet manifests itself in the form of a pixie and grants buffs and heals in addition to providing gameplay hints.
Lost Pages of Taborea: It's the little things
As we wait in rapt anticipation for the final volley of Chapter 3 goodness, I find myself speculating about other possible additions and changes that could go into Runes of Magic. Now that the pet system is up and running and the relationship system is on the horizon, will there be a myriad of balances made to classes? Or, will Runewaker and Frogster spring any fun surprises on us? I'm not sure what it is about the time right before a patch, but it gets my neurons firing and makes me want to play amateur designer. Besides trying to figure out exactly how the relationship system is going to work, I've been thinking about how I'd add my own changes to some of RoM's current features. The door is wide open for speculation in this department, but I wanted to look at what I thought would be possible for pre-existing areas in the near future. Follow along after the jump and see whether you agree with what I'd do to the lore, battlegrounds, crafting, and a handful of random features.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Grouping basics
This week, I've been thinking a lot about Runes of Magic's ability to cater to players with different MMO backgrounds. Many players may never have played a subscription game from the West, while others may never have experienced the different mechanics found in Eastern F2P MMOs. What you get is a banquet of food and all the guests aren't sure of the proper etiquette or rules or when it's time to eat. If we stick with a food analogy, the group feature would be a main dish. Lots of F2P MMOs have been imported from the East, and they don't handle grouping in quite the same way as Western subscription-based games. In fact, the ideas of raiding, pick-up-groups, and instances that can be found in almost any Western MMO, don't exist in most F2P games. This article takes a look at some specifics of grouping in RoM, including the recruitment board, experience debt, looking for a group, and etiquette.
One Shots: How does your garden grow
One of the things we love about Runes of Magic is that the starter player house is completely free. Sure, if you spend any time in the world, you'll likely want to improve it, but you can't really argue with the price tag for the first one. Some players use it as a crafting mecca, picking up workbenches and opening the doors to friends. Others opt to use the space like today's One Shots contributor, Johanis, who likes to raise exotic flowers. He writes in to explain: "Here is Wilmay, my new scout/mage from Runes of Magic. As you can see she is very proud of her green thumb and has produced many useful herbs and ores." From old school to new school, F2P to subscription, and everything in between -- we love to see your images! If you'd like to take part, all you have to do is email your screenshot to us here at oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a quick description. We'll post it out here and give you the credit. %Gallery-85937%
Lost Pages of Taborea: Call to arms!
It's only been a few months since I started writing the Runes of Magic column, but it seems much longer than that. I love writing these guides, tips, and opinion pieces for fans of this awesome MMO, but I felt something was missing. Even after all the terrific comments and discussions from players, there seems to be many people who haven't tried RoM yet. Seeing comments -- almost weekly -- about people saying they are going to try RoM is really cool. I am a huge fan of the game, and it's my intention to bring the fun and excitement of it to you, through my articles. I'm not hoping that I stop hearing about new players, because those comments are a small sign I've succeeded in my writings, but I do want to take the opportunity to present a "call to arms". RoM is an amazing one-of-a-kind MMO that has captured my imagination and adventure for fun. It can be all too easy to lump this game into an already complicated world of free-to-play MMOs, and dismiss it as "more of the same". It really isn't more of the same. Let's take a look at how this MMO is different, fun, steadily growing, and branching out into the MMO community. This article should catch everyone up on the current status of the game, and how it has faired in the spotlight.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Gotta catch 'em all
What an incredible expansion Chapter III: The Elder Kingdoms is turning out to be! In addition to the awesomeness of the new two-seated mounts and the new instance, Runes of Magic also received surprisingly large new gameplay features. Yes, I'm talking about the new pet system that seemed to be overshadowed during the advertising of The Warnorken Castle, but is no less exciting than Warnorken Arena, for which the patch was named. The pet system is so large in scope that it renewed the initial wonder and excitement I had when I first logged in to RoM and saw all the uniquely deep elements it began with. Finding, naming, and caring for pets is an entire game unto itself that bleeds into -- and feeds -- other aspects of RoM as well. It's Pokemon meets Digimon meets MMO, and it's delivered to you by the Easter Bunny. Hop past the jump to reveal all the inner workings of this awesome new system.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Building a rogue/priest
One thing I've been slacking on is looking deeper into all the class combinations that Runes of Magic offers. I've tried rolling other characters before, but I've barely dinged 20/20 on any of them. They have been left collecting dust for too long. So, I've been rummaging through all the guides, asking questions in-game, visiting the forums, and playing alts to write on a specific class combo. As I'm always attracted to the weird and unusual, I had to start with a lesser-used pairing. I think the rogue/priest combination is one of the most intriguing classes in RoM. At first glance, it's a super-squishy pairing that runs out of energy fast. Looking a little deeper will show it to be a deadly mix of DPS, healing, and group support that allows a lot of freedom to how you prefer to play. It's a fun, funky combo with a lot of versatility for soloing through the game and partying in high-level instances.
Lost Pages of Taborea: PvP culture
Even though I'm not a very competitive player, I sometimes like having the additional options found in PvP servers. In fact, my main character has been on one since Runes of Magic's open beta, and I've come to really appreciate the fun that can be had on it. Simply being a spectator of all the random and exciting fights has been enough to outweigh the annoyance of being a target for more than a few gankings. RoM's fully open PvP system makes for an interesting cultural perspective in which the players create the equilibrium of peace and conflict. It may be surprising -- or not -- given the somewhat harsh rules, but life on a PvP server is a fairly peaceful experience. This week I take a look at the past and present of RoM's PvP system. What are some of the system's implementations? How have players adjusted to self-govern? Why isn't there rampant chaos? It's an interesting learning experience if you're new to RoM or you've never played on a PvP server, but it's also a great retrospective for you veterans to get involved with.
Lost Pages of Taborea: You can play for free
The life of a free-to-play game columnist sometimes feels like driving a super-charger across a post-apocalyptic planet's surface: pock-marked with jagged smoking craters, littered with crumbling cities and dotted with shanty towns full of biker gangs. No matter how hard I try to avoid anything dangerous on my way to a coveted twinkie factory, it's only a matter of time before I run into some. I usually try to avoid anything that I think will immediately ignite a box of old, wet dynamite when talking about Runes of Magic, but I think I'm going to go out on a limb this time by saying you most certainly can play RoM for free. I had spent two years browsing many other MMOs' cash shops before I saw RoM's, and back then a lot of what they sold were time-restricted items. You could buy any assortment of outfits, mounts, or even some attribute boosters, but you lost most items after a short amount of time. I know a lot of F2Ps operate differently now and have started experimenting with many ways of selling items, beyond any perceived notion that the game was built with simple roadblocks. Still, I think those games feel very separated from their cash shops and that's why RoM's shop stands out to me.
Lost Pages of Taborea: It's all about the lore
I thought long and hard about how to approach a story-based post for Runes of Magic. In the end, I felt it was best not to write on the lore, but about the lore. To sit down and lay out what happens for you felt like cheating you of actual game play. I didn't want to write what I thought would essentially be a long list of spoilers, but rather try and paint a picture of Taborea. Something that could hopefully act as a book review -- in a way -- to let you know the flavor of the world without spelling it all out. I applaud Runewaker for the work they've done to include a rich amount of story into RoM. They're a Taiwanese developer making an MMORPG for a largely Western audience. Then, the German publisher Frogster has to deal with localizing everything into English. Those are no easy hurdles to jump and still end up with a story as good as the one Runewaker and Frogster give us. Before translating even begins, they have to deal with imagining a Western tale. RoM has become very popular and Runewaker is no doubt steadily growing their company, but they are still fairly small in relation to some larger Western developers and have to work that much harder to get the quality job done.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Quick, cheap high-level armor upgrades
The armor enhancement feature in Runes of Magic is undoubtedly insane. Between being able to add rune slots, raise tier levels, burn stats, raise durability and boost power rating, upgrading becomes a game of its own. I've noticed it adds an incredible level of complexity that can be confusing when I decided to upgrade my character. Could I just buy a ton of Purified Fusion Stones and up the tier of what I currently have, is it better to burn six green stats, or is it necessary to do everything? I've been tackling these issues, as I find myself wanting to speed up the rate at which I can solo -- post level 50. I sifted through a lot of the same game chatter, when I asked my question about which direction I could go to improve my attributes. Many answers pointed me to spending an exorbitant amount of real cash on Purified Fusion Stones and combining them with yellow stats -- if necessary -- until I was good enough to start making repeat runs through Cyclops Stronghold. That seemed to be a straightforward route, if money wasn't an issue. If I had enough money, I could just as easily buy pre-upgraded equipment from players selling it on world chat, or bought any combination of Mana Stones from the auction house. Then I'd have all the components I'd need to make very well-geared equipment customized with the exact stats I wanted. Unfortunately, the dollar I planted in the back yard failed to grow, and I'm stuck with limited funds. The other issue was that I just wanted to be good enough to smooth out the high level experience curve. I wasn't looking to solo instance bosses my level. I was looking for the middle of the road with an equal time investment.
Runes of Magic announces new pet system
As part of the ongoing updates to its Chapter III -- The Elder Kingdoms expansion, Frogster has announced a new pet system coming to Runes of Magic later this month. The impressive patch will add over 100 virtual pets to the free-to-play fantasy MMORPG, each with a range of new gameplay abilities designed to augment player characters. Pet eggs will become available upon completion of a specific quest, and once hatched, the pets can be cared for, managed, and combined using a new interface. Pets will also directly affect their masters depending on how players choose to allocate their experience, loyalty, and talent attributes. Frogster hints that well trained pets will more ably support characters in combat and crafting, as well as provide superior buffs. Players will be able to own a maximum of six pets, with one active at a given time. Stay with Massively as we'll bring you more on this exciting new system as it develops.
Lost Pages of Taborea: The cash shop
I'm really looking forward to the coming weeks in Runes of Magic. I'm shopping around for a new guild to partake of siege wars and other guild goodness. I'm also planning to throw some funts or maybe even a macaroni toward the Item Mall. I've spent money on RoM before, but most of it went toward decorating my house, customizing the look of my equipment, or extra storage chests. This time around, it's all about beefing up my attributes and jumping into more content. I need to alleviate that trudging-through-mud feeling I'm getting from the leveling curve while prepping for some dungeon action. It will be win-win for everyone. I'll be having more fun by opening up new aspects of gameplay and you'll get to read all about it. First thing I need to do though is speed up some armor-enhancing to boost my ability to kick some butt. Since I'll be doing all of this shopping, I thought I'd cover my opinions on how Frogster handles the Item Mall. Click past the break -- free of charge -- to see my opinions on pricing, what types of items you can get and how it will affect your gaming.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Costume Killer
If you play MMOs long enough, you may find yourself running across glitches or mechanics with interesting side effects. Sometimes these side effects can be beneficial to your gameplay because they circumvent difficult parts of a game. Maybe jumping at just the right spot lets you walk on air and cross a cavern, or maybe certain spells and items give beneficial effects which allow you to down the Lich King. These types of loopholes have always interested me from a psychological perspective. They present a moral gray area for players to make a decision. On one hand, nothing is being used that isn't already in the game. There are no outside programs or hacking of any kind, but the mechanics of these unintentional easter eggs seem to tiptoe around what are supposed to be challenges. Runes of Magic has its own gray area that affects the PK system on PvP servers. I'll give you the gist of it, what it results in, and my opinion on whether players should be using it or not.
Runes of Magic introduces new set skill system
You might think the developers of the free-to-play fantasy MMORPG Runes of Magic would take a moment to rest on their laurels. After the successful release of the huge Chapter III - The Elder Kingdoms expansion last week, a little downtime would certainly be in order. Runewaker Entertainment and Frogster are taking the opposite approach, however, as they continue to roll out new features and content for the residents of Taborea. Next on the list is a new set skill System, which allows players level 50 and above to collect armor sets which give their characters additional skills. The armor can be collected in the bowels of the game's many dungeons, or bought from a trader in the city of Dalanis. Single pieces of armor add to attributes and character stats, while full sets of armor unlock the new set skills and make them available on the game's action bar. As it stands now, players can activate two set skills, with three additional slots coming soon. Check out all the details at the official site.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Six things you should know about Chapter 3
Can you smell it? It's the fresh, clean scent of new content and it can be very addictive. It can cause corner gas stations everywhere to run out of energy drinks and governments to enact laws as players around the world drop everything and make a mad dash for their PCs. The real-life dash is quickly followed by an in-game running of the bulls to explore new features and gain new levels with the ferocity of a starving Dragonfang Wolf. The whole incident usually ends with players waking up, looking out the window to see whether it's night or day, checking to see which day of the week it is and smelling anything but fresh and clean. Rejoice, because the time has come for Runes of Magic. The main release of Chapter 3 is out giving players even more to do and giving me more to write about. I've gotten my digital hands dirty to come up with a list of interesting points you should know about this latest chapter. While you can look over a list of some of the main features on RoM's website, I wanted to make my own slightly different lists. I think you'll agree that there's plenty to love about this new release.
Lost Pages of Taborea: That nasty level curve
The sands of time have poured like Red Bull at an all-night LAN party and the week was gone before I knew it. However, Father Time is reversing things on me this week because I'm looking at 24 hours without playing Runes of Magic this week. Even though this is a painful prospect, I can take some comfort in knowing that Chapter 3 will be waiting on the other side. I'm itching to get back in and continue my climb to the new level 60 cap. A month ago, I thought I was going to be prepared for it, but I had hit a leveling curve. It turns out that leveling slows way down when making the move from Weeping Coast to level 53 and up Savage Lands. Let's laugh in Father Time's face as we whittle away a few minutes of the day by looking at how this level curve affects RoM.
New video shines a light on Runes of Magic Chapter III
Set to launch this upcoming Tuesday, May 18th, the newest addition to Runes of Magic -- Chapter III: The Elder Kingdoms -- will offer players even more new content in an already rich free-to-play world. And of course, no pre-launch would be complete without a shiny new trailer to show off some of the things players can expect to see when the new areas roll out. That's why we were glad to see that the Runes of Magic team posted a shiny new video on their Facebook feed this morning. While the video touches on Chapter I and II, it's the look at Chapter III that we're most interested in. Between the preview of Janost Forest, the new 6-man Dungeon of Dalanis, and even more ahead for the denizens of Taborea, there's quite a bit to draw in players even more than before. Mind you, if you get in this weekend, you can also take advantage of today's free surprise orb giveaway, and some other treats that Frogster Interactive has going for the end of Chapter II. Be sure to check out the full Chapter III: The Elder Kingdoms trailer behind the break!
