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Warhammer getting a token system for RVR gear
Since Warhammer Online's launch, obtaining powerful RvR gear has been subject to lots of luck and a broken contribution system. Mythic intends to supplement this by adding a new token system that will reward players for RvR participation and dedication.Players will soon be looting common medallions and rare crests from player kills (in oRvR and scenarios), keeps, fortresses, zone locks, campaign locks, and various city siege phase completions. These tokens can be used to purchase RvR set gear (e.g. Annihilator, Conqueror, etc.) and special potions from quartermaster merchants.Tokens will not be tradeable but they do scale throughout the tiers. For example, players can convert 5 common T1 medallions into 1 common T2 medallion. Players can also backwards convert 1 rare conqueror's crest into 5 common T4 medallions. Higher rank set gear will require a combination of rare crests and common medallions for purchase.Mythic is currently seeking feedback on this proposed new token system on their official forums, so head on over to have your voice heard (game account required). They plan to initially launch with tokens for RvR set gear only but future patches will bring expansions to this new currency system (e.g., PvE dungeon gear).
Pirates to get more RvR love from Flying Lab Software
Pirates are always the underdogs in MMOs, aren't they? That seems to be the case in Pirates of the Burning Sea, where the Pirate nation has been at a disadvantage with the game's Conquest system. While their ports can't be controlled (permanently) by another nation, they're likewise unable to keep the ports they conquer. The latest devlog from Flying Lab's Lum is titled Pirates and Conquest and addresses this disparity between the Pirate nation and all other nations in the game. One solution they plan to implement is increasing the four points that Pirates gain by capturing a port to five. Lum explains, "Currently, Pirates get four points every time they Raid a port, while Nationals get 10. This means that for a Pirate to keep pace with Nationals, they have to win three port battles in order to get the same amount of points. Since every nation can only attack three ports at a time, this means that Pirates would always have to have their maximum amount of attacking ports at all times, and then they have to win all of those battles." Ouch. However, by increasing their capture points to five, Pirates will only have to win two battles and won't need to maintain constant port attacks to stay on par with other nations.
WARbander's Handbook: oRvR methods, maneuvers, and philosophy
Fear not, armchair general! There's a new strategy guide out there called the WARbander's Handbook that just might help your smaller force take on the zerg in Warhammer Online!"Zerg" is probably one of the more common words that come up when you talk about large-scale PvP in MMOs. Other words synonymous with "zerg" are "swarm," "overkill," "mindless," "%#@#$!" and "what a bunch of lamers." Okay, the last two were expressions, but they're probably the most accurate.When you call your enemy a "zerg", it almost always means they have more people than you, and if you're angrily calling them a "zerg," it probably means they're kicking your heiny. There are occasionally intelligently organized zergs, but most often they're mindless groups of players trying to overwhelm you by sheer numbers (not skill). They can be outclassed if you know what to do and this guide gives you the strategies to do it.Zergs are common in WAR because the RvR-centric game is built for tens to hundreds of people to try kill each other out on the battlefield. Group sizes are small (6 people), however, you can combine up to four groups and make a warband (24 people). Oftentimes you will encounter several enemy warbands when they are trying to lock a zone.
Mark Jacobs on WAR 6-month state of the game
Mythic VP/GM/CEO, Mark Jacobs just delivered his highly anticipated State of the Game announcement for Warhammer Online one week before the six-month anniversary of its release. Mythic is currently in the midst of Call to Arms, their first live expansion, and recently delivered a whopping patch that fixed over 500 bugs and introduced two new careers (the Slayer and Choppa). Mark states that the next iteration in this series of patches (1.21) will fix 400+ more bugs, attempt to balance the careers even further, and deliver more new content. The 1.21 patch will launch next month. Details on their 1.3 patch are a bit foggy, but they may deal with items from the following list, which Mark calls the "Eleven Enticing Enhancements" list for WAR: Client/Server performance in RvR Bug & Polish Open RvR in general Keeps in general Keep Defense Battlefield Objectives Zone Capture Zone Capture rewards City Raiding for fun and profit Career Balancing Scenarios Finally, Mark touches upon the progress being made with the new Tomb Kings themed dungeon. Fans of Dark Age of Camelot will not only find it reminiscent of Darkness Falls, they will also find some new and exhilarating experiences. If any of these things pique your interest, you could always give the game a try with WAR's 10-day free trial.
Mythic merging forty low population WAR servers
This news miraculously slipped under our radar yesterday because it was billed as yet another round of source server transfers. Upon reading a bit deeper, we noticed this line: "Characters on the source servers listed below will all be consolidated onto the corresponding destination server. All source servers will eventually be closed."There are 40 source servers and 15 destination servers listed in the table. This transfer and eventual merge will affect every server except Phoenix Throne, which is widely regarded as the most balanced and stable server for all of Warhammer Online.Perhaps the most interesting part of all this is a speculative tool called the Warheap active server list. If you look at Mythic's official list of destination servers, you will notice that they almost identically match the only servers listed on Warheap with active rank 40 RvR taking place. We were originally sceptical about how accurate this tool was but now we're believers. The only question remaining is how accurate the activity numbers really are. (Incidentally, they are scraped from Mythic's very own Realm War site.)Some people may take this news negatively, but WAR subscribers have been begging for server merges for months now. It appears they are finally getting their wish, which can only improve the game. You need people to RvR with, right?
The Digital Continuum: Beyond Warhammer Online patch 1.2
Warhammer Online players are in the midst of the Bitter Rivals live event, plus another big new patch. I'm going to guess that it probably took a lot of development muscle to get the Black Guard, Knight of the Blazing Sun, Slayer and Choppa in a fun, playable shape. Not to mention the improvements to open RvR, Scenarios, PvE and general quality of life fixes.I have no doubt that the east coast developer has the next several patches planned out to some degree. Nonetheless, Mythic, Warhammer Online and its community are at a development crossroads -- and so today I'm going to explore a few possibilities.
The Digital Continuum: Beyond Warhammer Online patch 1.2 (part 2)
As for guilds, I really like the approach City of Heroes takes when supergroup bases. br> Enable guilds of a certain rank to have customizable bases, and with enough guild contribution they could hire their own personal flight masters that don't have any fee associated with them. On top of that, you could even get crafting areas setup within guild bases, as well as career trainers as well.
Come on in, the WAR is lovely
Warhammer Online has plenty on their plate for the coming months. The whole Call to Arms expansion is bringing live events, two new classes, a brand new dungeon themed from the Tomb Kings, and plenty of changes and additions to RvR combat.So what does creative director Paul Barnett and executive producer Jeff Hickman do on their spare time? Well they go to the New York Comic Con and film silly videos about Warhammer with MTV Multiplayer! While the video is amusing, the two also get into some of the nuts and bolts of WAR, including a few reasons why any player should give their game a try and what they're doing to make the whole experience better. Also, they have giant foam warhammers. You just can't turn down giant foam warhammers.
Warhammer Online opens public test server
Massively multiplayer online games are continually changing, from the time a game launches to the day the servers shut down. Sure, patch notes spell out most of those changes, but it's always good when an MMO developer opens up a test server for the players. It allows you to check out new game mechanics firsthand, risk-free, and see what works for you and what doesn't. More importantly, it lets the developer know what they need to improve. This is what Mythic Entertainment is doing for Warhammer Online players as of today (Tuesday, February 17th), letting them preview the changes coming to Realm vs. Realm combat as well as Career balance changes on the public test server. Mythic will be conducting a large scale Tier 4 Open Field Realm vs. Realm test on Wednesday, February 18th at 8pm EST. The dev announcement states: "Bring your friends to the PTS and be amongst the first to experience the new Zone Domination system in a focused player test. Be sure to log on early to join the premade guilds (points of contact for invites will be announced in game) for the night." Detailed info on how to access the public test server is found in the Warhammer Herald announcement as are the patch notes for the public test of Game Update 1.2. Mythic has announced the first expansion to Warhammer Online! Check out the announcement itself, the two brand-new classes coming to the game, and the enormous new dungeon/zone slated for a few months away! Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!
Warhammer Herald recommends Book of Grudges mod
If you're hoping to add a little extra something to Warhammer Online's Realm vs. Realm gameplay, look no further than the "Dammaz Kron: The Great Book of Grudges" mod. Valkea, the creator of Dammaz Kron, describes the mod as a "PvP Black-Book" designed to look like a new section of the Tome of Knowledge. All transgressions against you are recorded in The Great Book of Grudges, as are your own acts of retaliation. Best served cold, and all that.It's also gotten the nod from Mythic Entertainment. In their words, "The Book of Grudges transforms your fighting experience by adding a meta game and another objective to RvR. Just in case you need another reason to perpetuate the extermination of your enemy Dammaz Kron has your answer." Dammaz Kron can be downloaded from Curse and all the info about the mod is listed there as well. Mythic has announced the first expansion to Warhammer Online! Check out the announcement itself, the two brand-new classes coming to the game, and the enormous new dungeon/zone slated for a few months away! Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!
Huge Lands of the Dead update via WAR/Eurogamer dev chat
Eurogamer just hosted a live dev chat with Mythic Entertainment's Warhammer Online staff. Present in this conversation were Executive Producer Jeff Hickman, Senior Creative Director Paul Barnett, Senior Designer (careers) Rob Hinkle, and Live Producer Destin Bales.Mythic staff elaborated on many parts of their game and business from launching in new countries, to the new Slayer and Choppa careers, and balance. Perhaps the biggest reveal was a plethora of new information about Lands of the Dead. They spilled the beans on a number of interesting details, including a live event leading up to LotD that will essentially be a huge Order vs. Destruction battle for who can gain early and exclusive access to the dungeon (for a limited time). This "RvR-gated ultimate sandbox" zone is expected to change hands nightly and will have content for smaller group sizes up to that of a warband (24 players). Paul Barnett elaborated on some similar mechanics to Darkness Falls from DAOC by saying LotD will have, "tokens, other loot methods, a wide level range, and the thrill of your enemy always breathing down your back."Do yourself a favour and check out the entire dev chat log because there are so many more details than this!
The ultimate RvR teamplay guide for Warhammer Online
The folks at GOA put together an extremely thorough strategy guide for RvR teamplay in Warhammer Online. It covers all the basics from how to form a group to suggesting various ideal career combinations, but it doesn't end there. They're just getting warmed up!The guide discusses the pros of assigning a group leader and lays out some general guidelines a good leader should follow. It also suggests how a strong group will follow that leader while remaining alert for danger and constantly communicating with each other. Strategic offensive and defensive positioning for various career archetypes is covered in depth. The guide suggests that as important as it is for you to know the roles of you and your allies, it is equally as important to study your enemy and learn their various strengths and weaknesses. Last, but certainly not least, the author runs the reader through various group tactics as complex as you'd find on any whiteboard in an NFL team's locker room!Warhammer Online is ultimately striving for mass market appeal, but its core is that of a realm vs. realm (many players vs. many players) gaming experience. The RvR teamplay guide is an excellent starting point for anyone who wants give this MMORPG a try but is slightly timid about RvR or PvP. It's also fantastic for any current WAR subscriber.
Valentine's Day in Warhammer Online announced as the Night of Murder
Alongside the announcement of the Call to Arms expansion, the Bitter Rivals event introducing the Choppa and Slayer, and the Lands of the Dead mega-zone, Jeff Hickman revealed to us earlier this week that Valentine's Day will be a scream in Warhammer Online. Tying into the recent 'bloody valentines' sent to bloggers, Jeff walks us through the Night of Murder.Warhammer Executive Producer Jeff Hickman: We have a new event coming out soon, it's our Valentine's Day event. Starting in Mid-February it begins before call to arms, but we've been planning this event for some time. It really highlights some of the things we're trying to do with live events that are different and unique. It's an event that happens in the IP called "The Night of Murder." We felt that was appropriate for Valentine's Day.The Night of Murder is this great week-long event, very RvR-centered. As a player I can go get a murder quest, where I will be asked to go assassinate five marked targets. We've put some interesting tech in that causes enemy players to be marked. They're literally marked on the battlefield, a big skull hovers over their heads. The players don't know that they're marked, though, so you get to the battlefield and you see your opponents arrayed against you ... and they don't know who you'll be going for. Unbeknownst to you, you might be targeted as well. So it will be pretty exciting.Some of these marked targets, when you loot them, they'll drop a skull. One of the tasks for the Night of Murder is to play a game of skull tossing; literally on the battlefield there will be people tossing their dead enemy's skulls back and forth to each other. You'll see skulls flying around, all over the place. And in some rare cases when I kill a marked enemy target I'll be able to loot his head. When I loot that, it will give me the ability to send my enemy a special Valentine's Day surprise. A Night of Murder message about the trophy I got at his expense.It's clever, it's comical, but there are just a ton of cool new things we're doing with that event. Things we haven't done before. Mythic has announced the first expansion to Warhammer Online! Check out the announcement itself, the two brand-new classes coming to the game, and the enormous new dungeon/zone slated for a few months away! Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!
The Daily Grind: PvP or PvE?
Are you a ruthless killer or a ruthless killer? Ok, scratch that, bad distinction. A better question is do you prefer to spill the blood of vicious monsters or the blood of players who spill the blood of vicious monsters?Today's grind question is, if you haven't guessed or read the title by now, would you rather PvP or PvE your way to fame and glory? Are you more of the type to spend lots of time in World of Warcraft's Arenas (when they're not broken) and Warhammer's Realm vs. Realm, or are you the type of person who would fetch that book for old Abercrombie and protect the lands from the invading dark elves?We're interested in what you have to say on this very divisive issue. Drop us a line in the comment box that's hiding down below this article and tell us if you enjoy your PvE, PvP, or even a combination of both!
WAR's new Zone Domination system in development
Without a doubt one of the liveliest people we know of in the MMO industry, Paul Barnett, put out a YouTube video this week in celebration of his birthday, and brought Warhammer Online devs Jeff Hickman and Colin Shannon in for some updates on the game. Perhaps the most interesting thing revealed is WAR's new Zone Domination system which is currently in the works. It's intended to supplement Warhammer Online's realm-vs.-realm system by providing more compelling ways to capture zones. Hickman says, "If you can capture everything in a zone and hold it, claiming the Keeps and dominate that zone, then you have a very good chance of capturing the zone." Or, as Barnett summarizes, Zone Domination will give players more reasons for defending and holding objectives.Colin Shannon also provides an update on the reduction of crashes in WAR, and there's (perhaps) a ray of hope mentioned at the end for having multiple items in the mail system. Check out the video embed below the cut for more on the state of the game, and what new features WAR players should be getting in a forthcoming patch.
The Digital Continuum: Checking in with Warhammer Online
It's been a while since Warhammer Online was released and in that time we've seen a lot of crazy stuff happen. Namely, Wrath of the Lich King launched, became the fastest selling PC game of all time and rocketed World of Warcraft into an even high number of subscriptions. And with everyone spending the last couple of months in Azeroth -- myself included, admittedly -- I felt it was about time to hang up my Death Knight armor, grab a halberd and run around as a crazed Dark Elf wearing way too many spikes and blades for his own good.
Having fun just isn't rewarding enough on its own
Regis over at the Wizards and Wenches blog brings up a good point when it comes to both having fun and getting your levels in -- sometimes you just can't have it both ways. Regis wants to spend more time in Warhammer Online's open Realm vs. Realm combat, enjoying the live PvP and the crazy times it produces, but feels that it just doesn't provide enough incentive past the fun aspect.One could easily level faster via questing and PvE opporunities, or scenarios and questing simultaneously, but both can get extremely tedious after a while, especially when you're getting close to the maximum rank. On the other side of the fence you have RvR, which is a more varied activity when compared to questing and scenarios, but just doesn't pay out the experience points and feels more like a guilty pleasure that wastes time.Check out the full story over at Wizards and Wenches to get the full gist of what's going on in Regis's mind when it comes to this sticky situation.
Counterpoint on Warhammer Online's Fortress siege population caps
We reported earlier this week that Warhammer Online has been having some issues with Fortress sieges, and opted to implement a solution -- population thresholds. That solution has led to fewer Fortress-related crashes and overall improved performance, but not everyone is as enthusiastic about the changes Mythic has made to Warhammer Online. A good example of this type of dissent among the WAR ranks can be found at MMOCrunch in a criticism written by Paragus. He takes aim at the Tier 4 campaign changes to Fortresses and states that imposing population thresholds diminishes the very thing WAR bills itself as -- a massive realm-vs.-realm game. He doesn't pull any punches when he states, "The fact that they are trying to spin this by saying 'to allow even more players to participate' by capping population in a given area only makes me feel better about pulling my guild out of this game. I'll be waiting for the flames from Warhammer fans."
The week in Massively features
Speculating on combat in Star Wars: The Old RepublicEven though Star Wars: The Old Republic is now officially a real game, we still know very little about it aside from slivers of information BioWare has been able to share with us. What we know even less about is the combat system, which has simply been described as "choreographed" much like the battles featured in the Star Wars films. Warhammer developers weigh in on 1.1a RvR changesThe core philosophy for 1.1 as regards RvR is to guarantee you a rewarding time in open field combat. It should be just as rewarding as spending an hour anywhere else in the game. Why you should be playing Lord of the Rings Online: The WardenThe Warden class in the Lord of the Rings Online (introduced with the new Mines of Moria expansion) is, all things considered, a blast to play. A capable jack-of-all-trades class, rich in tactical options. Not a class for those who prefer their combat to be a bit mindless, the Warden keeps you thinking. SOE CEO John Smedley explains the Station Cash service roll outWe sat down earlier this week with SOE's CEO John Smedley for a talk about the whys and wherefors of the Station Cash service. More than just a novelty incorporated into their flagship games, Station Cash is an important new service vital to the future of Sony Online Entertainment.
Warhammer Online patch 1.1a goes live!
After months of smaller, targeted patches Warhammer Online players are getting a heaping helping of new and shiny goodness as patch 1.1 hits the live servers later today. The Warhammer Herald is trumpeting the arrival of the much-anticipated new game tweaks, and the server wranglers at Mythic hope to have everyone back online by 1pm ET. We've talked at length about the new content arriving in this patch, but here's a quick high-level overview: New Careers - These plate-wearing soldiers actually arrived on the live servers earlier this week, but their arrival is technically a part of this patch. Open RvR Influence - As we've talked about in the past, the company is really trying to direct players into the RvR 'lakes' to take on keep sieges and battlefield objectives. Check out our exclusive interview with Josh Drescher and company about 1.1 RvR goals. Easy Public Quests - One PQ at each chapter of tier 1, across all the racial pairings, has been tuned to 'easy mode'. Challenges and rewards have been reduced to allow players the chance to solo their way through that content. Armor Set Improvements - Itemization across the armor sets has been tweaked, in some cases increasing the power of set pieces while in others making them more accessible at earlier levels. Main Assist and UI improvements - A new 'main assist' mechanic will make it easier to focus fire on the tank's target, while tweaks to the PQ UI and the addition of item hyperlinking makes the game easier to manager overall. There's a bucket more content in there as well, everything from player statues in the cities to graphic option tweak. And that's not all; you might have noticed the 'a' added to the 1.1 designation. Mark Jacobs wants us to be sure to know there will be lots more goodness coming soon. Check out the full official patch notes for the all details on this first content drop, and make sure to check out our interviews on the site today for more insights. In addition to our RvR chat, we also talk about the team's attitude towards new content and some news about the rate we'll be getting new classes. Read up! WAR has gone 1.1! Check out our full coverage of the 1.1a patch, along with our interviews exploring upcoming content and the open RvR changes. Plus, don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!
