April 2010

An Apology To Those Members of Torrent Knights

stargrace April 5, 2010 5Comments

This weekend was quite drama-filled which is sad, but it happens. I’d like to send out an apology to those players on Antonia Bayle who were members of Torrent Knights.

The Story: When I decided to stop playing on AB and just concentrate on one server (Oasis) I left a ‘core’ group of people as leaders of the guild with the understanding that things would run as they had before, a casual guild with a T2 hall, open to friends and family. There were five of them, all whom I trusted exclusively. This was my first mistake (and not one I’ll make again). One person who had leadership abilities decided (I have no idea why) to kick out every single member of the guild (myself included) save for themselves, and their friend. I had no idea that any of this had gone on and it wasn’t until I logged into my last remaining character on AB that I even knew any of this happened. A quick look at EQ2 players showed that yes indeed, the guild had been all but dissolved.

I have since then regained control of Torrent Knights (which has been a guild I created back in 2007 and had ever since) and am trying to contact those who used to be members so I can get them re-guilded. I understand if people do not want to join the guild again but I’m hoping that they will. I’ve managed to invite Tipa, Kanad, and Calreth back to the guild and I just wanted to say that I’m so sorry that any of this happened. It shouldn’t have happened, and I’ve taken all precautions to ensure that it does not happen again.

It does also mean I’m back to playing on multiple servers, but I’ll find a way to divide my time (I really need a few copies of me) so that I can play on both sufficiently. I did not care or mind that I personally had been removed from the guild but there were 15 other innocent players who called TK home, and there was no way I was going to allow one person to ruin that for them.

Things are back to normal now, hopefully. If you were a member of TK and need an invite please contact me in game by mail with the time that you will be around so I can meet you and invite. My character on Antonia Bayle is Stargrace, and again I’m so sorry for the drama.

The Importance of Guild Levels

stargrace April 4, 2010 6Comments

How important are guild levels to you? In most games levels don’t mean a great deal. In EQ2 however, they become things to treasure. At guild level 30 you unlock the first (also known as Tier 1) hall. You also unlock 5 room housing in Qeynos and Freeport (the newer towns don’t have these guild level restrictions). You gain 5 amenity for your hall, and other items open up on the city merchants.

At level 50 you unlock the T2 hall, and have the option of many more amenity. You also unlock rows to the guild bank as you level up which gives you much more space to deposit items that everyone can make use of.

I like the way that this works, but I don’t enjoy the length of time it takes to get anywhere. If you’re a large guild with dedicated players (and especially raiders) you may not even blink at the amount of status required to level your guild. But if you happen to play in mostly casual smaller guilds, or even have a guild of your own, you’ll realize the incredible amount of work it takes for one or two or even three people to level a guild. Reaching 30 is not so bad, and the grind from 30-40 seems to speed up some. Once you hit 50 it crawls by, and beyond 53 I have personally never seen in my own guilds (the ones I run) so I can’t really speak of it. Of course I’ve been in guilds of higher level, Iniquity is closing in on level 58, and Paradise Lost is almost 86. You can purchase some neat titles and fun house items the higher you get, too.

So what do you think, are you a fan of this ‘leveling up a guild’ idea? Do you like to make use of what comes with the bonus of working towards a common goal? Let me know below!

To Speak as a Dragon (again)

stargrace April 3, 2010 7Comments

If there’s one single quest I had to pinpoint as being absolutely essential to have completed at any level, it has got to be “To Speak as a Dragon”. This quest was released when EQ2 first came out way back when, and has been used in every single expansion in key quests all over Norrath.

Lets go back in time, to when EQ2 first released and the level cap was 50. To Speak as a Dragon used to be an epic encounter just to start the quest (it’s since been changed to heroic). You needed to speak the language of giants in order to progress the very first step of the quest – and of course the most difficult aspect of all, you had to go visit Nagafen multiple times in Solusek’s Eye to progress it.

Solusek’s Eye has changed a LOT since release. It was an “end game” zone, and the mobs saw through invisibility. That means to even get to this quest (after picking it up) you needed a full group. It would take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours to clear your way down to Nagafen’s lair (remember, this is before the times of any gate potions, veteran rewards, or call of the hero) and there was no short cut port to skip the cave area.

Since that time things have changed. You can bypass a lot of the walking, especially if you know a friend who may be close by that you can port to. The mobs are gray, and while the annoyance of running all over Norrath for updates hasn’t changed, getting around Norrath certainly has.

So why am I doing this quest?

As I said, it’s the “key” quest in pretty much every expansion. You needed it for Prismatic 1.0 (Darathar raid anyone?) you needed it for Claymore. Soulfire. Multiple deity quests (one in specific where you have to speak to Wooshi in an instanced version of Emerald Halls). You need it to convert your mythical weapon into a buff – which is why I’m currently doing it.

Nagafen is one of the most imposing dragons EQ2 has to offer, and the zones leading up to Nagafen’s Lair are absolutely stunning. Everything from Lavastorm, to Solusek’s Eye, to Nagafen’s Lair screams of molten lava and pain. Or maybe that’s just for me, because I have such fond memories of doing my prismatic 1.0. Back when we did x4 raids for legendary weapons and thought they were the best thing since sliced bread.

I really miss those days.

The Climb to 90

stargrace April 2, 2010 3Comments

I have a lot of characters (dur) and one of the toughest decisions I ever have to make at any one time in game is WHO to play and who to work on next in terms of progression. While many people tell me they wish they had as many characters as I have, it’s an issue of “the grass is always greener on the other side”. It was discussed in guild and decided that perhaps I should level up my paladin, so that the guild could have another tank to do things with, as of this moment we only have one “main” tank, and a second that’s the alt of our main coercer. I enjoy my paladin a lot despite the fact that she was heavily power leveled, and I’ve never actually dedicated any time to playing a tank – and thus I decided to work on her almost exclusively.

The paladin is sitting at level 86 at the moment, and yesterday I managed to complete my fabled epic with the help of some friends. I’d like to get the mythical version done, but of course I don’t have to speak as a dragon completed, which means I’ve got to run all over Norrath picking up runes first before I can begin that quest.

I spent 200 plat on kaborite clusters to make skills, and picked up a few cheap ones from the broker that don’t get upgrades. Her achievement list is VERY low, but again that’s something I can work on. I’ve also been stashing aside level 90 tank gear so that when she finally reaches the appropriate level I have some things tucked away.

Am I any good at playing a tank? Well, I’ve boxed one quite a few times even though I’ve never actually had my own. That doesn’t exactly make me a good tank, but I like to think I’m not horrible. Really, only time will tell.

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