I'll come back to EQ2 after the bonus exp weekend wraps up, so for the moment that leaves me with the games that I haven't done much with recently to round up my MMO update tour.
WoW is simply not a high priority for me at the moment. I will, in principle, want to clear out all of the level 85 heroic dungeons sometime before the next expansion, and there are some new features, including cosmetic items, to be tried whenever 4.3 happens. What I'm really not interested in is signing in on a daily basis to earn a few more tokens towards Firelands dailies that could someday award me gear that I'm not even going to use before the next gear reset. At least in EQ2 (and soon Rift) I can earn AA exp that will stay with the character beyond the next patch if I do spend time on daily quests.
LOTRO has an expansion launching this month, and I have yet to make plans. It's not entirely clear to me how the thing will work with the business model, which currently includes the level cap, physical access to zones, and the epic questline for all players regardless of payment. If this is the case for Isengard, I don't see why I'd want to pay $30 for the "expansion pre-order" instead of $5-15 for the content I need a la carte.
(I'm not sure if the world of Middle Earth isn't slightly more atmospheric if I make a point of NOT owning all the generic quests so that the only quest available to me at a new camp is the Epic story, rather than having the wilderness campfire lit up like a Christmas tree with quest icons. I still have a bit of Mirkwood content that I have yet to finish, along with epic storyline in Enedwaith and scaling skirmishes, so there is, in principle, content I can use to earn exp if I don't buy all of the new stuff.)
My current plan here is to wait and see how much content I actually end up needing, rather than rushing to pre-order now and ending up with content that I don't bother to use. DDO has basically fallen off my plate, leaving me with about $30 worth of unspent Turbine points and a fair number of quest packs that I paid to unlock but have yet to play because my characters are not high enough level. Because it's a free to play game with no real time limits, it's possible that I will still come back one of these days and get good value for that money. Even so, this situation is what I don't want to have happen in LOTRO - no matter how much of a "better deal" the pre-order is, the money is still wasted if I buy it before I plan to play it, and don't end up using it once I do so.
What I'm Working On: Runes of Magic
Runes of Magic is a game that I sign into every other week or so when I remember, run a daily or two, and sign out. Probably the biggest decision I've been pondering is which class to take as a third option to accompany my Druid/Rogue.
The optimal min-max solution would be to go with either a scout or a warrior, as either class can be used as a secondary class with the Druid to heal, and in some combination with the Rogue to do DPS (melee as a Warrior/Rogue or Rogue/Warrior, ranged as a Scout/Rogue). The more I've considered this approach, the less interested I am in pursuing it.
The primary role of the character as I'm currently playing it is to do ranged caster DPS on the Druid/Rogue combination, and try to somehow scrape together the bare minimum Rogue levels needed for stats, skills (and Elite skills), etc. In principle, given indefinite time, I could earn enough TP to allow the Druid to also pursue healing with the alternate subclass, but it's really not likely that I'm going to invest the time needed to make that happen.
Instead, I'm strongly inclined towards picking up the Warden, a melee pet class (when used as a primary) that contributes mana-based melee attacks when used as a secondary. I've always enjoyed pet classes where the player fights alongside the pet, rather than hiding behind it. I would have the option of leveling as either Warden/Druid (allowing the Warden to heal herself, rather than just her pet) or as Warden/Rogue with more DPS and the option of dual wielding. It's possible that I will enjoy Rogue/Warden more than I enjoy Rogue/Druid (a melee class that just feels lackluster because its other half does not melee), or that the Rogue will continue to be something I level as much as I have to.
If I ever attempted endgame, I suppose this would leave me as a character that does two flavors of DPS (ranged on the Druid/Rogue, melee on either combination of Rogue and Warden). That said, as I wrote about Rift, I'd rather have two roles that I enjoy - even if they don't earn me group invites - than many roles that are useful on paper but that don't make me want to log in to use them.
The optimal min-max solution would be to go with either a scout or a warrior, as either class can be used as a secondary class with the Druid to heal, and in some combination with the Rogue to do DPS (melee as a Warrior/Rogue or Rogue/Warrior, ranged as a Scout/Rogue). The more I've considered this approach, the less interested I am in pursuing it.
The primary role of the character as I'm currently playing it is to do ranged caster DPS on the Druid/Rogue combination, and try to somehow scrape together the bare minimum Rogue levels needed for stats, skills (and Elite skills), etc. In principle, given indefinite time, I could earn enough TP to allow the Druid to also pursue healing with the alternate subclass, but it's really not likely that I'm going to invest the time needed to make that happen.
Instead, I'm strongly inclined towards picking up the Warden, a melee pet class (when used as a primary) that contributes mana-based melee attacks when used as a secondary. I've always enjoyed pet classes where the player fights alongside the pet, rather than hiding behind it. I would have the option of leveling as either Warden/Druid (allowing the Warden to heal herself, rather than just her pet) or as Warden/Rogue with more DPS and the option of dual wielding. It's possible that I will enjoy Rogue/Warden more than I enjoy Rogue/Druid (a melee class that just feels lackluster because its other half does not melee), or that the Rogue will continue to be something I level as much as I have to.
If I ever attempted endgame, I suppose this would leave me as a character that does two flavors of DPS (ranged on the Druid/Rogue, melee on either combination of Rogue and Warden). That said, as I wrote about Rift, I'd rather have two roles that I enjoy - even if they don't earn me group invites - than many roles that are useful on paper but that don't make me want to log in to use them.
What I'm Working On: Vanguard
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| Tell that tree that I've had enough of its amateur shenanigans! |
I was finally able to get off of the newbie trial island, hitting level 11 in both adventuring (Disciple) and Diplomacy. The last quest area would have been very tough to solo, but was fine with a second person - fortunately, there are people running around the temple during peak hours.
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| The Lucky Charm bracelet, for completing the newbie adventuring line. The item is much prized because it goes on your diplomacy outfit but gives you adventuring stats, and cannot be earned in any other way besides completing the newbie island as a new character. Also note that it will be sent into your diplomat bags automatically if there's room - I spent about 5 minutes trying to figure out where it went when I obtained it. |
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| Triumph of the horse that let me choose the color of its saddle-blanket equivalent. |
Intercontinental travel is handled by a system of teleport crystals - for a very small fee, players can teleport to the location of their choice, and the NPC's will even offer breadcrumb quests to all the level-appropriate locations in the game. Once you're actually in the zone you want, though, your only guide is a compass that does not indicate altitude, or even whether you're on the right continent.
The second diplomacy quest once you're off the newbie island points players at one of the game's major cities, which I had never heard of and was not located on the continent I was on. First, I went to the correct coordinates, which were clearly indicated on my map even though they were on the wrong continent. Then I somehow missed a turn and ended up in the city docks, trying to figure out why I couldn't get to the coordinates which were up above on top of the cliff. A few steps later, you're sent off to another city on yet another continent, and again it took me a while to figure out that the new location was not actually in the place the compass seemed to be pointing to.
Fans of the sandbox and immersion may argue that this system is realistic (real people may assume that you know approximately where famous cities are) and leaves more for the player to figure out on their own. Fair enough, and perhaps this would have impressed me back in 2005. Today, the fact that it takes 5-10 minutes to ride my horse from the teleport point on the outskirts of town to a Fed-Ex quest objective that I actually know how to find (and will immediately leave for the next mission) is a dealbreaker by the second or third time it happens.
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| A shiny flight beacon, for a "how to use the rental flying mount" tutorial. |
And so, I wandered off without much fanfare. Not because I was out of things to do, or because I hated the game, but simply because there were other things that I would rather spend my time on. I guess that's a mixed review, but I don't especially fault the game for it, and I hope it sticks around for people who enjoy it.
What I'm Working On: Rift
Sitting about three quarters of the way through the year, Labor Day has often served as an occasion to talk about what I am (or am not) doing in MMO's and why. Given the recent "half-birthday" welcome back re-trial in Rift, I figured I might as well start there.
My Rift subscription initially lapsed with my cleric at level 36 at the end of the first month. I wasn't sure exactly why I wasn't too keen on continuing, but I figured that there was no hurry, because the game would only get better until I felt like picking up.
Re-role-ing
In hindsight, it's possible that I over-thought my class selection. If Rift had asked me to pick one of 32 classes, instead of 32 souls organized into 4 callings, my choice would almost certainly have been some sort of DPS Warrior. Given a system that prizes role flexibility and that I am no fan of tanking, this seemed like a bad idea. Instead, I went with the Cleric, secure in the knowledge that they can do everything (tank, heal, melee, and ranged DPS). A big part of my lack of motivation with the game may well be that it's better to have one role that you actually enjoy than eight that you're ambivalent about playing.
Over six months and two re-trials since, in which I advanced from 36 to 40 and then from 40 to 43, two things have changed. The first is that they have done some work on the Cleric DPS souls, which are always going to be my default option for soloing. In particular, I enjoy the newest iteration of the Cabalist caster soul better than previous attempts at the Cabalist or Inquisitor.
Second, it turns out that there is a role that I actually enjoy - healing on the Purifier soul. I didn't have much of a chance to actually do this while leveling, because neither solo content nor small scale rifts/invasions require that much healing. On the most recent retrial, though, I used the cross-server group finder to land myself instance groups as a healer, and the groups I was in were able to survive Runic Descent (even level for my Cleric) and King's Breach (which I am a bit over-leveled for). Having basically instant queues as a healer makes this role far more accessible as something I can do on a regular basis.
Looking ahead
I remain skeptical of whether the new alternate advancement mechanic - which appeared for testing this weekend - will be a good thing in the long run, but the fact is that it's coming as soon as this month, and I see no reason to push on to 50 until the dust settles and I can get credit for all the stuff that goes on at the level cap. That aside, I think my decision to hold off on leveling has paid off, as I will reach a much more mature and polished endgame than I could have if I had continued back in April.
Overall, I expect to be spending more time in Telara by the end of the year, so perhaps this is a case where the advice we always give each other about waiting six months on a new MMO was the right call.
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| My cleric, now level 43, with her DPS cabalist build in action, numbers flying every which way. |
Re-role-ing
In hindsight, it's possible that I over-thought my class selection. If Rift had asked me to pick one of 32 classes, instead of 32 souls organized into 4 callings, my choice would almost certainly have been some sort of DPS Warrior. Given a system that prizes role flexibility and that I am no fan of tanking, this seemed like a bad idea. Instead, I went with the Cleric, secure in the knowledge that they can do everything (tank, heal, melee, and ranged DPS). A big part of my lack of motivation with the game may well be that it's better to have one role that you actually enjoy than eight that you're ambivalent about playing.
Over six months and two re-trials since, in which I advanced from 36 to 40 and then from 40 to 43, two things have changed. The first is that they have done some work on the Cleric DPS souls, which are always going to be my default option for soloing. In particular, I enjoy the newest iteration of the Cabalist caster soul better than previous attempts at the Cabalist or Inquisitor.
Second, it turns out that there is a role that I actually enjoy - healing on the Purifier soul. I didn't have much of a chance to actually do this while leveling, because neither solo content nor small scale rifts/invasions require that much healing. On the most recent retrial, though, I used the cross-server group finder to land myself instance groups as a healer, and the groups I was in were able to survive Runic Descent (even level for my Cleric) and King's Breach (which I am a bit over-leveled for). Having basically instant queues as a healer makes this role far more accessible as something I can do on a regular basis.
Looking ahead
I remain skeptical of whether the new alternate advancement mechanic - which appeared for testing this weekend - will be a good thing in the long run, but the fact is that it's coming as soon as this month, and I see no reason to push on to 50 until the dust settles and I can get credit for all the stuff that goes on at the level cap. That aside, I think my decision to hold off on leveling has paid off, as I will reach a much more mature and polished endgame than I could have if I had continued back in April.
Overall, I expect to be spending more time in Telara by the end of the year, so perhaps this is a case where the advice we always give each other about waiting six months on a new MMO was the right call.
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