Tag: EQ2

Ah, friends. Those people who can convince you (even without trying, or them being aware of it) to do pretty much anything. Ultann has been playing two accounts in EQ2 for as long as I can remember, and at one point in time I was too. I gave it up after a while because my PC wasn’t exactly handling it well, but things have changed. My second EQ2 account is 6 years old (roughly) but so neglected that the only character on it was a level 77 fury.

I decided to start dual boxing again in-game, and created a paladin on the account. I know that’s a bit amusing seeing as I’m leveling her up using my shadowknight, but hey why not. I prefer to have a tank and healer on each account, opening up more options on who to play and what to do. After an evening with Ibeogur (I played my bruiser along with the new paladin) she sits at level 60, which is a pretty good start.

Speaking of characters – October 1st to the 15th EQ2 will be allowing people to create ONE FREE heroic character. These characters start with gear, 280 aa, and the ability to fly. After this grace period players will have to purchase them. Now, I’m not the target audience for these level 85 characters because I enjoy the leveling process, have many level 90-95 and have no inclination to purchase them. HOWEVER I won’t turn my nose up at a free one, and I honestly don’t mind if other people purchase them. I do find it a bit sad that SOE is saying 1-85 content doesn’t matter any more so why not skip it – BUT – the game is aging, and chances are veterans have played through it MANY times before, where new players would rather be playing end game.

Do I think it’s going to create a surplus of players who have no idea how to utilize their characters? No. First of all, EQ2 isn’t that complicated. Second of all, there’s still time to learn, and third, I’m just naturally optimistic. I hope that this new mechanic works as it is intended which is to bring new blood to EQ2 and to revitalize the old. Yes, ideally I’d like them try to make 1-85 content relevant, but I understand that it’s a HUGE endeavor, one they probably just don’t have the resources for at this time.

I haven’t decided what characters I’ll be creating yet, we’ll just have to see. Are you going to be taking advantage of the new heroic characters? What are you going to create?

Oh Skyshrine. I wish you were not the best and fastest way to level any character from 90-95, but alas you are. That’s where I found myself for most of last night, helping a guild mate (as well as leveling my own character, a shadowknight). Ultann managed to get his defiler to 95, and then also got his conjuror to 95. My shadowknight reached 95, and also gained a handful of alternate advancement. Then I decided to go on a shopping spree and purchased what gear I could afford. I still need to make some expert spells but aside from adornments the character is ‘done’ – except she’ll need to either do the Drinal series of quests or purchase the 50 obol item that allows her to see obol and spirits. Since I don’t exactly have 50 obol to waste (I know they’re easy to get, but lets not forget I have multiple alts to gear up) I suppose I’ll be doing the quests. It should be easy at least.

I’m also contemplating subscribing my second account. Undecided at this exact moment but it’s something I think I’d like to do again. Problem is the account has lapsed for two years or so, and that means it doesn’t have AoD or Chains of Eternity. With a new expansion just around the corner, and AoD being sold a-la-carte (eventually) I’m thinking my best bet would be to use the account as a free to play for now and then purchase the latest expansion when it releases. It would be nice to be boxing again and there is a 90 necromancer as well as a shadowknight (and a handful of alts) to take advantage of.

I ran The Dreadcutter (also known as DC) last night with Ultann and his inquisitor, his characters are geared enough that they’re able to solo the zone so I tagged along on my 95 swashbuckler. The problem is she also has not completed the Drinal chain of quests, so she couldn’t see half of the items that dropped from chests. Only my defiler (Stargrace) has managed to complete it. Since I’m still “getting back into the game” so to speak I haven’t gathered a surplus of supplies yet, and I still haven’t LFG much because I’m not familiar with all of the zones. It was a lot of fun to dive into them with guild mates, and I’m hoping we can do more.

As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

I spent most of this weekend working on alts, both my own and those of Ibeogur, who was deciding between a wizard and a beastlord (but eventually settled on the wizard). I created a bruiser, and she is now level 81. I figure that is pretty good progress for a non-double xp weekend. Of course now the real ‘work’ begins, but it’s still nice. I’ll have to get some gear crafted for her since I’m pretty sure I left her in level 30 gear, and I’m going to look into starting her epic quest so that she can do epic repercussions when the time for that comes around.

I’ve had a bruiser before, even geared her up with raid gear that I purchased. However I deleted the character for some reason (just something I do) so I decided to level a new one up. The necromancer is still in the 30’s but I did work up her crafting to 20 or so and put her on the path of the carpenter (which I already have one of, but why not have more). I’m leveling her crafting mostly for the status that comes from doing writs, the guild could always use more status. Right now Torrent Knights is 64% of the way through level 65. I’m still hoping we get reach level 70 and purchase a T3 hall, but we’ll just have to see.

As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

Nektropos Castle is another one of my favorite zones. It’s creepy, dark, filled with zombies ghosts and other denizens that go bump in the night. There are also three versions of this zone, so if you’ve only explored through one version (or perhaps none) be sure to check out the other two (more details about them in a bit).

My necromancer, her trusty zombie, and her gingerbread man (who I am thinking of naming Fred) traveled to this wonderful zone along with Ibeogur (who did the majority of the brute work, I admit). There is a LOT of discovery experience to be had within, as well as many named to defeat. The zone is perfect for anyone 30-37 or so, I believe we headed over there at 27. My favorite part is that the place is still quite a maze, even after all this time. It’s probably one of the few zones that I still use a map to find my way around in. Plus there are a lot of really neat quests inside. Not only are there heritage quests, but also a very neat house item with some pretty interesting lore ties.

When you finish the zone you’re given a quest called “Putting Maltena to Rest” and this grants you access to the 2nd version of the zone, Nektropos Castle: The return. This zone is meant for players level 50-55 but it has quite an unfinished feel to it and could really use a revamp in terms of monsters and loot. That shouldn’t stop you from making your way through the place at least once though, just for the atmosphere!

The third version is Nektropos Castle: Tribulation, and it’s for level 70 characters. This zone is much different than the first two, and you can only access it through the back of the original castle, in a crypt. You also leave it through the front door, and you complete the zone backwards which makes things nice and confusing (in a very good way). There are of course still glitches, like, the named not giving any aa at all, but if you’re looking for atmosphere and experience, this is a great place to explore. I think it’s very easy to adventure in zones that we are all familiar with, and some times we need a bit of a reminder that there is an entire world out there just waiting for our character. What are some of your favorite EQ2 zones? Let me know in comments!

As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

I was in the mood for a little relaxation last night, so of course that means playing an alt for a bit (or crafting, but I was in the mood to work on an alt). My little Arasai (pictured above with her best friends) and Ibeogur decided it would be best to head to Ruins of Varsoon which is just off of Thundering Steppes. When we got there the zone was pretty empty aside from one character and their mercenary who were only killing the named mobs. Since I was there for experience (or rather, aa experience) I had no issues with that.

The Chamber of Immortality can be found within, which is where my screenshot is taken. You defeat rounds of mobs until you activate the mini boss and then the final boss. Guaranteed exquisite chests drop from these last two named which is a good reason for doing the dungeons right there.

The zone is also home to a lot of book quests, something I’m always interested in completing. I managed to get two of them to drop, but did not get very many updates on the individual quests. I’ll be back to the zone eventually to try to complete them. By the end of the evening the zone was starting to fill up and so I decided to call it a night. I love playing on Antonia Bayle but some times the lower level zones can get a bit crowded. This is a good thing, I love seeing an active game – however since mentored characters and people with mercenary tend to be overly powered, it means that it’s quite easy for a single player to clear a zone, leaving others without much to do. Thankfully, EQ2 has LOTS of zones, so you can typically move on to some place else (or a dungeon).

The progress was quite good. I locked the necromancer at level 30 for the time being, and she inched her way to 84 alternate advancement points. There are a few more zones I want to explore before unlocking experience, I’d like to be around the 150 aa mark, but we shall see.

As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!