Tag: EQ2

EQ2 Has a New Progression Server (But it’s Not for Me)

EverQuest 2 opened up a new server yesterday, a timelocked progression called Fallen Gate. I have such a sweet spot in my heart for EQ2 that I jump in pretty frequently even though the game has changed well beyond what I enjoy these days (and beyond what I have time to play). Even though I said I wasn’t going to play any new MMOs and I was going to settle (has it only been a week?) I found myself creating a ratonga necromancer and before I could help myself I was on the Isle of Refuge.

After completing a few quests I realized that I wasn’t really having fun. Chat was different, people were harping on one another depending on whether they played on live servers or had just returned to check out the fun. You do need a subscription to play on the TL servers, but there was a lot more animosity than I remember. There were lots of folks around and it was a joy to see, but I wasn’t feeling it. Every time previous that I had returned the rose coloured glasses that I wore lasted at least more than one play session – but not this time.

Maybe it’s because I myself was overly tired, maybe it’s because I find myself having a hard time getting into anything these days besides quick little games that I can easily jump out of, but the traditional lure that I counted on being there just wasn’t.

I logged out and spent the rest of my evening playing a silly little clicker game I picked up from the steam sale. Sometimes you just need to know what you’re in the mood for, and what you’re not.

I hope those who are playing have a fantastic time, even if it wasn’t for me. I’m sure I’ll still stop into EQ2 on occasion, but until I have more time it’s easier to just live those events vicariously through someone else.

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

EQ2 and a Free Level 100 Character

Every so often I still get the urge to log into EQ2 and poke around, even though I really don’t have a lot of time to play the game (ie: I don’t have enough time to get a group together to do things). I heard that Daybreak was giving away a ‘free’ level 100 character for people who logged in before May 22nd, so I eagerly patched my launcher – only to have it crash with an error 10x in a row. I took to the forums and found that a lot of others had the same issue. So I waited it out.

Saturday I was able to log in without any issues, and in my /claim window I was granted my level 100 character boost. Now most of my characters are already level 100 because right after my Son was born I had a lot of free time on my hands while he was sleeping the days away (not so much these days). I only had two characters out of my collection who were not already level 100. A dirge, and an inquisitor. I decided I would boost up the dirge.

I have incredibly fond memories of EQ2 as anyone who has been reading this blog for the past (almost) 11 years knows – but things have changed over the years. I’ve changed. The game has changed. How the game is played is changed. I return, but never to the same extent as I did back then. It’s just not possible. It’s not a bad thing either, it’s just how things are. I miss how things used to be, too. I miss raiding. I miss the community. I remember it all with fondness though and I don’t “blame” the game for changing because I think that it’s 1. completely natural for things to change over time and 2. completely necessary. Plus like I mentioned above, it’s not just the game that has changed, I’ve changed too. What I want out of a game has changed. What I can give into a game has changed. I find it a bit of a fascinating rabbit hole to dive down and think about, really.

Anyway. It was good to log in, I’m glad I boosted my character, and yes, almost immediately after I logged out. My station access is probably up before too long and I just can’t justify paying for another year of the game when my time is so limited. I feel the same about my World of Warcraft subscription which is also set to expire before too long. Of course if anyone would like to nudge a donation my way I’d keep them active (lol) – can’t blame a gal for trying! Speaking of subscriptions, EVE Online has once again been calling my name. There’s a game that I absolutely adore that doesn’t require a whole lot from me if I choose to play it that way (invention, mining, running missions, etc). Something to think about in any case.

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

Epic 2.0

People have been in a frantic dash to figure out the latest epic quests in EverQuest 2 – the Epic 2.0. There’s a few details that I’ve heard (and seen over on EQ2i) that have some people upset. I have been listening to the chatter in the EQ2 discord channel because I am no where near ready to begin this massive undertaking.

You need to complete city quests in Freeport or Qeynos (depending on your alignment). You also need to be a level 100 tradeskiller. Since I want to do the 2.0 on my latest character (my brand new necromancer) that means I have a while to go. I’m only level 35 at the moment in my crafting.

You also need to be level 5 ascension before you can even begin, and that takes approximately a month of grinding every single day. There are rumours that you need to be level 10 ascension level before you can complete the epic, which means three months of grinding every single day. Perhaps this is a way to keep people subscribed and playing your game? Not sure.

I know the mage epic involves a KP named that others are killing to grief mages, and people are unhappy about that. The tradeskill portion cannot be commissioned, and the non-tradeskilling players are upset about that. I imagine crafters are going to be upset too because they would typically make money off of the adventurers who didn’t want to craft, and now everyone who wants their 2.0 will be forced to do it. I don’t like the idea of forcing crafters to adventure any more than I like the idea of making adventurers craft. Some people just like to do one or the other (or neither). Allowing people to ‘play the game their way’ is much more important to me.

Still, 2.0 has people pretty excited, and I like to see that. I haven’t seen any completed ones yet, so it’ll be interesting to see if it’s all worth it in the end.

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

Kindness

Yesterday was a really tough day. My little guy has been going through colic and yesterday was one of his more difficult days with it. Colic is just another word for ‘unexplained crying’ – where you’ve taken care of the basics for your little one, and they still cry, for what seems like no apparent reason that you can figure out. Burped. Bathed. Fed. Changed. Bounced. Walked. Talked. Sang. Swung. You try all of the tactics in your arsenal and for whatever reason your baby decides to keep on wailing. Sometimes for hours.

So that was Leo.

Then I found out my hematoma that I’ve been dealing with since September is once again infected. To be blunt this absolutely wrecked me. I’ve been trying so hard to heal up and get rid of this wound that I’ve had since my c-section that it just made me burst into tears to see it this way again. It took me three weeks last time to have my doctor finally prescribe some antibiotics and I’m not sure I even have the strength to go through that argument with him again. I have nurses coming tomorrow to look at things (they’ve been coming every two days and then twice a week ever since it happened) and I’ll see what they say.

To say I was in low spirits would be an understatement.

Then I received a very nice letter from a random person on steam, and along with it a game from my steam wishlist. This person had “known” me since I started writing about EQ/EQ2 many years ago (2017 will be my 11th year) and they wanted to let me know that they appreciated my posts. I don’t write a lot of controversial stuff, so my posts tend to remain without comments or discussion but I have always simply written for myself and the simple joy of writing. I have met some wonderful people through my blog over the years, and I have received my share of whispers and tells and notes from those who have followed along.

This note (and game) came at a time when I was feeling pretty low about things. We had heard that Carrie Fisher passed away, as well as the Author of Watership Down. 2016 has not been a kind year. In 2017, I’d like to see more kindness. To ourselves. To each other. To strangers. It’s kindness like the one I mentioned above that keeps people going, keeps them believing, keeps them pushing on when their day to day lives may be difficult.

It’s pretty easy to be kind in a video game setting, and that’s something I want to do more of moving forward.

Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself.

Epic Repercussions (again)

My necromancer hasn’t been around for very long but I already have a list of things I wanted to complete on the character starting with my fabled epic which I completed a few days ago. The necromancer epic is incredibly simple. It requires no factions and just a handful of old dungeons. Once I had the fabled, I went to the mythical. That one required Protector’s Realm, Leviathan, and Nexona from Veeshan’s Peek. I mentored down and completed them all solo without too much issue.

After that it was time to start Epic Repercussions, and that quest probably took me the most amount of time, but I got it completed this morning. Now the necromancer is set to begin her 2.0 whatever that entails. Since she’s “new” there’s lots of faction and language work that I haven’t done on her yet. I also want to work her up as a provisioner. I do already have a level 100 provisioner but she’s on Maj’Dul which isn’t much use to me these days.

I leveled the carpenter to 100, bringing my crafters to 5/9 at level 100.

Next up? Probably working on the signature line for the previous expansion. There’s an ethereal I can get if I complete both that signature line and the one for Kunark Ascending. I’m not sure how long it is or how complicated but hopefully it’s not too bad. I’m still using twark gear in my off-hand, so completing this and getting the ethereal would be really nice. Then it’s back to faction work in KA.

Busy busy!