Tag: EQ2

Favorite Zones

You know those places in game like the back of your hand. It doesn’t matter which level they’re meant for, or what level YOU are, or how many times you’ve already been to those locations, I think all of us have a few ‘favorite’ zones in the games we play. I know there are some dungeons in World of Warcraft that I’ll run no matter what my level is simply because I love that dungeon. There are zones in EQ2 that I’m constantly headed towards just because I adore them so much.

Do you have a favorite zone story that you’d like to share? Post below and let me know! It doesn’t matter which game it’s coming from, I still want to hear.

What’s in a guild?

This morning I was posting over on the Nomadic Gamer about my latest EVE Online experiences (by the way, Nomadic is looking for volunteer writers if you happen to be interested!) and it got me thinking about guilds, and how we all use them for different things. Or we don’t use them at all, either way. For me, having a guild varies from game to game. In World of Warcraft I don’t have a guild, and I get by just fine. Even more so now that there is the LFD tool to make use of. In LotRO I belong to Casualties of War, but it’s fairly quiet. It was like-minded people who had come together in various games (and then spread over time) much like the Nostalgia guild that started in EverQuest. In Fallen Earth I’m without a guild (do they even have guilds there? I’ve honestly got no idea), in Wizard 101 there’s no guilds (always a hope of mine to see some time). It varies, from game to game.

In EQ2 I have a number of guilds that I belong to, on multiple servers. On Lucan D’Lere I’m in a small guild with close friends, and I’m in that guild specifically because of them. I like to talk while I game, and it’s enjoyable. On Antiona Bayle I run my own small guild with some friends, we group together but there’s no real organized events. We have a T2 hall and guild harvesters as well as transportation that comes from owning amenity, and having a localized place to keep items (guild bank) is fantastic.

Then there’s the guild I belong to on Oasis, which is a raid guild with a ‘friends and family’ rank. That guild is far more utility then any of the others I belong to – and on that server I also have a 2nd guild that I keep just for random alts when I need to get away from it all. That doesn’t make the raid guild any less important or fantastic then any other guild I’ve belong to, it’s just different.

So when you join a guild, is it for social interaction? Is it for utility and what you can offer to them (as well as what they can offer to you)? Is there some other hidden reason as to why you may join a particular guild? Or maybe you’re one of those people who just don’t join a guild. If you are – why is this? I find that in games like EQ2 a guild just offers too much to want to go without one. Especially when you start taking into consideration the city merchants who sell goods specifically to guild members (based on guild levels), raids that can be done via guild recruiters, and numerous other ‘specialties’ that guilds seem to get (banks, etc).

Even housing in EQ2 is tied to your guild and level. If you want to own a 5 (6 now since it’s been expanded) room house in EQ2, you need to belong to a guild of a particular level. Sure, there’s nothing stopping you from joining and purchasing your home and then leaving the guild (you still get to keep your home) but there are very definite rewards for belonging to a guild.

Thoughts?

Are you a leader or a follower?

The screen shot was taken in West Freeport. I found it incredibly amusing that about 20 NPC were bunched together, and in front of them stood this cat, staring directly at the group. I could only imagine what it was thinking, and I decided with all of the recent turmoil in Freeport (Lucan D’Lere being trapped in the void, the citadel collapsing and what not) they had probably decided that the Thexians were out and they are now in. That’s how it played out in my mind in any case.

The general concept got me thinking about leaders and followers in MMOs, and whether or not everyone fit into those categories. I consider myself a follower. I enjoy doing whatever someone else wants to do and I don’t really like to take control of a situation. I’m content to play my class (and play it well) and learn of course, but when it comes right down to say, leading a group through a dungeon, it’s not a position I fit into very well. When it comes to looking for a group I am far more likely to join a group already searching for more players then I would be to start my own from scratch.

Now the problem comes when too many people are followers and no one wants to be the one to take control of a situation. Whether it’s simply because they’re not comfortable with the game or they’re just not comfortable leading others around it doesn’t really matter.

I don’t have this issue of course when I’m playing by myself. In that instance I’m the one in control, and I find it quite easy to think of what I want to do and how to go about it. When there’s something I need I have no issues leading my friends through it (TSO Chapter quests anyone? Epic weapon quests anyone?) it just seems to be with strangers that I have this ‘deflection mode’ set up.

So which are you, a follower or a leader? A combinati0n of the two perhaps? Are there even more options on these very basic roles within our MMOs? Let me know below!

Happy gaming, and I’ll see you in Norrath.

The Count Down Continues

This weekend has been fairly relaxing – game wise – which is a great thing. I’ve spent most of my time in EQ2 hunting for shinies and wandering into some achievements by luck. Did you know that when Sinking Sands was changed (levels increased) they also added new shiny collections to the zone? Well, they did. I spent most of the evening running around fighting other players for them.

Speaking of which. I realize it’s a game and all, but when you decide to race someone for a shiny on the ground why not be the better person and simply let them have it. That’s what happened to me last night. I’d be running towards one and suddenly someone on a faster mount would take off for it. I don’t need the item THAT bad, so I backed off. They obviously needed it far more then I did. I’m also not one to sit quietly if someone wants to race me for a shiny, I send them a tell about it and tell them that they must need it more then me since they’re so eager to stomp on someone for it. I don’t need anything that badly, and I hope they enjoy the item.

I understand that MMOs are mostly contested, and involve competition, between guilds, players and pretty much everything else out there but I have competition with mob encounters, and not with players. It doesn’t take much effort to be nice to one another. So I wonder why I see it so rarely in video games.

Aside from that I spent a good amount of time in LotRO, there’s a welcome back weekend going on and I had a lot of fun wandering around. My minstrel reached level 27, and I got some crafting done. I’ve been debating working on an alt, but I think I’ll stick with the minstrel, I’d like to get higher then my current level, eventually. Maybe I’ll even make it to end game some time (gasps).

I hope everyone else has had an amazing weekend, no matter where you find yourself. Happy gaming, and I’ll see you in Norrath.