Ding! Welcome to Tier 7 – Again

Yesterday, after nearly a year of off-and-on grinding, questing, and frustration, my Berserker hit level 60. And for a change of pace, it was on a quest turn-in. Usually it’s on some random mob.

And for the first time ever for me, I have an alt character that’s nearly as high level as my main. The last time this happened was back in my EQ1 days when I was still a mid-30s Mage, sometime in 2002.

It’ll be interesting to see how my tier 7 experience the second time around is shaped. Before, I had my Conjuror, and I could easily tag along in a group and go hunt things, and play it casual. Or I could easily solo just about anything in my path; Conjurors are after all one of the best classes at soloing.. Now, as my Berserker, I’ll actually be forced to lead groups instead of playing casual. I’ll have a much harder time soloing things, and exploring the world.

Already I’m having a frustrating time. My experiences in Kaladim to finish the fourth Rallos Zek quest was painful. To be fair, I was fighting white and yellow-con 1-up mobs who are highly social and have a huge aggro radius. Even my Conjuror would have difficulty in a situation like that. It also didn’t help matters that my gear is still mostly Tier 6 Mastercrafted (though I have some very nice Desert of Flames Fabled on). In two levels I’ll get another significant gear upgrade. And in about 4 or 5 levels I should be adequately leveled to lead groups through the easier parts KoS.

Of course, by the time that happens, Kunark will be around, and no one will be hunting in KoS anymore if they can help it. I can’t remember the last time I saw anyone hunting in Silent City, after all (though there were a few instance runs in Flames).

So what’s in store for my Berserker?

Well for the Overrealm, we have Tenebrous Tangle, which I’ve been hunting and about exhausted quests from. Only a few repeatable quests remain, as well as several Heroic quests (not to mention a few from the Claymore series). Sanctum of the Scaleborn will likely be my heroic dungeon of choice after I reach about 65, while people remain interested. I can move on to Barren Sky at about 63 or 64 and start the solo quests there, and will be able to hunt in Bonemire around 67. Palace of the Awakened becomes an option around 66 or 67 for tanking. And I can start tanking instances around then too, and get some much needed gear upgrades. Assumingthe population holds out in this level range (which I highly doubt).

For Faydwer there’s New Tunaria right now. But I can’t recall the last time anyone actually hunted there. Loping Plains will have lots of solo content for me for a few levels yet. Mistmoore Catacombs is an option for grouping in a few levels, though it’s not a popular zone by any means. Kaladim should be feasible around 65 or so, though again groups there are rare. Castle Mistmoore will open up at 70, but I don’t see it being a popular place to hunt after Kunark comes out. And I can start doing the Faydwer instances around level 70 too, though popularity will also wane with Kunark. And then there’s Unrest, and the Shard of Fear at around 70 as well.

Gear wise, I already have my suit of Xegonite ready (the pieces I will replace anyway). I need to get more Acrylia jewelry made to fill in most of my spots. A new Buckler is a must. I got my tradable weapons covered for now, until I can get better from mob drops anyway. And of course I’m going to need about 16 or 17 spongy loam for the Adept 3s I’ll need until 70. There’s a few quests I’ll be able to start, and hopefully finish. Claymore probably won’t be an option, but Swords of Destiny might be.

I gotta say, my Berserker is better situated for tier 7 than my Conjuror was nearly a year and a half ago. It’s probably because I already know what to expect from Tier 7, and I’ve had time to plan things out. Definitely not so with my Conjuror, I had to figure things out as I went. And spell upgrades for the Conjuror were (and still are) a high priority; it took nearly the entire expansion cycle to get the Masters I have now, and I’m still missing a few minor ones. Just as well, Kunark will take care of that problem soon enough.

Course, once the expansion rolls around, I’ll probably worry about the Conjuror 100% until I hit level 80. But I’ll worry about that in 3 weeks.

Newb guardian, I cant kill anything even cons

I happened across this thread on the SOE boards, titled Newb guardian, I cant kill anything even cons.

Right away I can see the problem that the forum poster, Ladsud, is having:

Hi, just started eq2 yesterday and choose a guard.

It never ceases to amaze me how many people pick up a brand new MMORPG (to them, at least), and either because they don’t know better, or because they’re a glutton for punishment, pick possibly the worst beginner class you can possibly pick. And in this case, it’s a Guardian.

I can see, from a beginner’s perspective, how a Guardian would appeal to an average beginner. You have here your stereotypical low-IQ plate-wearing sword-chucking thug. They’re typically one of your most powerful characters in an offline RPG, usually wielding the Sword of a Thousand Truths, and able to survive–and inflict–those annoying 9,999 HP attacks (Final Fantasy, anyone?). They also evoke the fairy tale image of a knight in shining armor, off to slay the dragon and rescue the princess, who is usually in another castle.

I can see that.

On the other hand, you have the reality of the situation. Guardians are tanks. Their job is to hold aggro, while monsters let loose all sorts of carnage.  They have very low damage output compared to other classes. And because they have such low damage output, they aren’t as able to kill mobs quickly, and have to resort (typically) to simply outlasting their opponent in solo play. And in group play, you have to act as the group leader and lead your group to your destination, being aware of your surroundings, where your enemies are, where your group members are,  whether or not you have aggro, and being absolutely sure you will survive when a giant tarantula decides to attack and devour you.

That’s a lot to keep track of. It’s pretty difficult for a veteran at times, but it’s especially hard for a beginner. Forget dealing with all that, beginners are still learning how to play; they often aren’t ready for all this multitasking so early.

Add to the fact that Guardians are very gear reliant; you have to remain on top of gear upgrades, so that you can survive your encounter of the third kind. A caster can get away with letting his gear slip as long as he has his spells, but not a Guardian. You let your gear slip for too long, and you get eaten alive. Forget to upgrade that weapon, and you lose aggro. Let your combat arts fall behind, and though you can survive getting beat on, you won’t be able to kill anything with any kind of speed.

In a word, unforgiving.

So I have to wonder, what compelled Ladsud to create a Guardian in the first place? I can only speculate, but perhaps he played a similar tank class in a different MMO. I know Warriors in EQ1 are just as unforgiving, if not more; if you don’t have access to high end loot, you can’t even go to high end zones and tank, though your DPS is somewhat respectable (for auto-attack). If he came from EQ1, then he should be familiar with how Warriors function, right?

On the other hand, Warriors in WoW can spec all-out DPS, and put out some crazy numbers. Maybe he thought the Guardian class was like the WoW Warrior? If so, he was pretty close; Berserkers would fit the criteria here, as they’re more damage-oriented than Guardians.

I may never find out, but I do have advice for people playing an MMO for the first time: Pick a class that works well for beginners; these classes tend to be excellent soloers. Not only will you gain the satisfaction of killing just about anything you see, within reason anyway, you’ll learn the game that much easier. In time, when you’re ready, you can go back and reroll a tank class, should you still desire to play one.

Class Strategy – Berserker Achievements (part 1)

One of the things i love to do is thoroughly analyze a subject — such as a class in an MMO, or the process you follow to build a computer — figure out what makes it tick, and share my findings with the world. It’s something I found I was very good at while I was an admin for The Magician’s Tower. It was actually one of the reasons I became an Admin, so I could more easily create, edit, and update guides that people (including myself) posted.

So today I’m going to continue that practice, and with something I’ve been wanting to do for awhile.

Ever since I’ve started playing my Berserker, one question frequently gets asked: “What AA spec should I do?” I suppose it’s natural to ask this; you don’t want to play a gimped character. And certainly the wrong Achievement build for a Berserker can gimp you, both in solo play and in group play, at least when compared to another achievement build.

So for my first part in a multi-part series, I’m going to thoroughly dissect the different Achievement Points options for the Berserker class, specifically in the Warrior tree. We’ll see exactly what they are, what they do, and whether it’s a potentially good or bad buy for a Berserker to get. In part 2, I’ll analyze the Berserker tree. And in part 3, we’ll start talking different build configurations, and the pros and cons with each.

Game Update 39

I’ll admit it, this one snuck up on me. I wasn’t expecting it until next week for some reason. Anywho, this is the last Game Update until Rise of Kunark comes out (short of the annual Halloween update, but that isn’t considered part of the Game Update cycle).

So what was all in the update? Let’s see what the patch notes say…

Rise of Kunark

It looks like SOE is taking preorders for Rise of Kunark now. That’s good for the lazy who don’t want to wait for the box. Me? I like waiting for the box.

So here’s a quick rundown of some of the features of Rise of Kunark – All-In-One Compilation.

• Journey beyond current limits with the new level cap increase from 70 to 80
• New zones, quests, armor, weapons, creatures and more…
• Achievement point cap raised from 100 to 140
• Includes Legends of Norrath^TM strategic online trading card game, digital starter deck, booster pack and loot item
• All-New Player Race, The Sarnak
• Quest outbound from the new starting city, Timorous Deep
• New Mount – Explore the world on the shoulders of a new rampaging beast – The Kunarkian Rhinoceros
• SpecialPre-order Bonus! Burynai Seeker House Pet. Burynai are a race ofcollectors and builders that have a strange affinity for certainorganic items found in Norrath. Give a Burynai seeker one of theseitems, they’ll bury them and store them for later. Rumor has it thatthey also may sometimes discover collectible items (shinies) that youdidn’t even know were lost under your home!

Taking this one at a time, here’s what I think.

Journey beyond current limits with the new level cap increase from 70 to 80

This was pretty much expected since the beginning of time. It was announced long ago, and it’s been nearly two years since a level cap increase. Players are getting bored being at the cap of level 70, and 100 AAs. And there’s only so much you can do to balance new raid content at level 70 without completely overpowering players. So, some breathing room with 10 extra levels is quite welcome.

New zones, quests, armor, weapons, creatures and more…

Wouldn’t be much of an expansion without this.

Achievement point cap raised from 100 to 140

This is a little bit controversial. I’ll explain in another post. Sufficit to say I don’t think this is a terribly good idea.

Includes Legends of Norrath^TM strategic online trading card game, digital starter deck, booster pack and loot item

Hmm, interesting? I’ve already dumped more money into it than I should have, so essentially this is just a bonus for getting the expansion. But since this is an all-in-one compilation, this is an easy way for SOE to introduce players to their new cash-cow card game. Who knows, players might actually like playing LoN.

All-New Player Race, The Sarnak

For the altaholic, new player, or someone wanting to start over, Sarnak must seem pretty cool. I certainly like the idea myself, though I don’t know if I have the plat funds to start yet another alt. I highly anticipate an immediate rush of new Sarnak once the expansion goes live; you see it whenever a new race/class/whatever is added in MMOs, and EQ2 is/was no different with Frogloks, Fae, Arasai, and Neriak.

Quest outbound from the new starting city, Timorous Deep

As explained at Fan Faire, Timorous Deep is the starting area for Sarnaks. Wouldn’t make too much sense to make a new race without a new starting area (though it did happen for Frogloks).

New Mount – Explore the world on the shoulders of a new rampaging beast – The Kunarkian Rhinoceros

Also announced earlier. I expect to see people running around on Rhinos shortly after the expansion.

SpecialPre-order Bonus! Burynai Seeker House Pet. Burynai are a race ofcollectors and builders that have a strange affinity for certainorganic items found in Norrath. Give a Burynai seeker one of theseitems, they’ll bury them and store them for later. Rumor has it thatthey also may sometimes discover collectible items (shinies) that youdidn’t even know were lost under your home!

Now this is different! I wonder if it’s preorder only, or if you can get it in the retail box too.

Hello World!

It’s always customary to introduce yourself with a Hello World. So here we go.

An introduction. My name is Xalmat. At least in EverQuest circles. My real name is a secret…though not a really well kept secret, you won’t have a hard time figuring it out. I’m 24 human years old (going on 25), currently an Equipment Technician in the Semiconductor Industry, and working to go back to school to earn a software engineering degree. I live in Glendale, Arizona, USA. Glendale is about a 5 minute drive from the Phoenix border. The whole area is urban anyway, so you can’t even tell you enter one city and leave another).

I’ve been playing MMOs for damn near six years, starting with the original EverQuest way back in November 2001. I played a Male Human Magician (an oddity) by the name of…you guessed it, Xalmat, all the way up to level 69. It was around September 2004 that I received an invite to the EverQuest II beta. I was skeptical at first, but it took all of five minutes of play to convince me that EQ2 was the type of game I wanted to play.

More than three years since then, I’m still playing EQ2. That’s even longer than I lasted on EQ1!

I used to be a forum moderator, then site admin for EQSummoners.com (formerly The Mage Compendium) and its two forums The Magician’s Tower, and The Summoner’s Tower. By and large, visiting and reading The Magician’s Tower is why I enjoyed EverQuest as long as I did, they have a wonderful community, filled with some of the brightest minds in all of MMO gaming.

Presently, I play two primary characters, and a miniature alt army, though nowhere near as extensive as some people.

Sess – 70 Conjuror, 70 Tailor, aspiring Tinkerer. Female Dark Elf. My first character created once EQ2 went Live (created November 2004, despite what the EQ2Players page says). A departure for me, as I’ve always made male characters. However, I insisted on being a Dark Elf Conjuror–which required some significant effort back in 2004–and I couldn’t stand the appearance of male dark elves. So, female it is. Besides, if I’m going to play a character, and get emotionally attached to it, it might as well be something I enjoy looking at day in and day out

Adamantite – 58 Berserker, 61 Alchemist, aspiring Transmuter. Female Fae. Pronounced A-da-man-tite (kinda like Wolverine’s Adamantium skeleton). I’ve had many alts prior to her, but I consider her my second main, and a radical departure from playing a caster. Created her about a week after Echoes of Faydwer came out; I mean, c’mon, the wings and dark elf illusion alone sell the character!

So what am I going to do with this blog thingy? What else is there to do, besides random musings and stuff? There’s certainly a lot to talk about, that’s for sure, especially with the Rise of Kunark expansion just under a month away.