Sentinel’s Fate Preview – The Hole [Archive]

View Full Version : Sentinel’s Fate Preview – The Hole

Kiara

01-06-2010, 10:49 PM

<img src="http://eq2players.station.sony.com/images/en/features/articles/exp06/logo/EQSF_logo_300_blackbg_bordered.jpg" width="300" height="163" /> What would an expansion about Odus be without The Hole? Those who played EverQuest will remember it either very fondly or with great horror about petitions to get their bodies back. The contested zone is vast and comprised of three wings. Adventurers can start exploring around level 82 and find content to occupy them all the way to level 90. There's more to The Hole than just the contested wings, however. There are also three instanced group dungeons of increasing difficulty.<a href="http://eq2players.station.sony.com/news/read/012010/3398" target="_blank">Read more!</a>

Lizzoraus

01-07-2010, 12:53 AM

Who remmembers crouching and standing up until you got through the tiny hole to get in <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/283a16da79f3aa23fe1025c96295f04f.gif" border="0" /> I dont think I knew anyone that actually had the key to that zone lol.

Kiara

01-07-2010, 01:39 AM

I remember it being one of the few high level zones where I could use my manastone. I'd run with a shaman who would cast torpor on me. It was like having unlimited mana and was wonderful.I can't count the number of times that I stoned myself to death in there... Or the number of times I ran through for the shaman epic!

aislynn00

01-07-2010, 06:08 AM

Hm... According to the preview text, the whole contested zone can be done by two to four characters and the instances are, respectively, easy to moderate, moderate, and moderate in challenge level. So, am I wrong in assuming that there isn't any contested six-person group content at all and that the instances are going to be completely trivial to raiders in raid gear? If so, that is highly disappointing. I initially got the impression that at least one of the three wings of The Hole would be aimed entirely at solid six-person groups. What happened to that notion?In light of the (supposedly) trivial nature of the Hole content, is the quality of the dropped items going to be toned down accordingly? I mean, you can hardly expect the tier 9 equivalent of fabled TSO zone drops from content that doesn't even require a full group, let alone a well-geared/played one.

guillero

01-07-2010, 06:39 AM

<cite>Karnos@Nektulos wrote:</cite><blockquote>Hm... According to the preview text, the whole contested zone can be done by two to four characters and the instances are, respectively, easy to moderate, moderate, and moderate in challenge level. So, am I wrong in assuming that there isn't any contested six-person group content at all and that the instances are going to be completely trivial to raiders in raid gear? If so, that is highly disappointing. I initially got the impression that at least one of the three wings of The Hole would be aimed entirely at solid six-person groups. What happened to that notion?In light of the (supposedly) trivial nature of the Hole content, is the quality of the dropped items going to be toned down accordingly? I mean, you can hardly expect the tier 9 equivalent of fabled TSO zone drops from content that doesn't even require a full group, let alone a well-geared/played one.</blockquote>Well,That a large part of The Hole is doable by 2 to 4 people is good news to me and my gf. <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" />Means me and my gf will have a blast in there with just the 2 of us <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" />It's nice that this expansion has a large contested dungeon that is possible doing as a duo or with a small group for a change with worthwhile loot.I am pretty sure, that the rest of the dungeons will all be aimed at full groups and RAID's. <img src="/smilies/8a80c6485cd926be453217d59a84a888.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />Jer

Palli_Oas

01-07-2010, 09:30 AM

I remember alot things....being a level 4 ninja with my group and getting to end parts of the zone.Only to have some random monk run down and train 50-60 ghosts on us.....but best of all was when we had a full group, no matter what people did... we just killed it and moved on.....I miss Arch Overseers on EQ1!!!But yeah...zoning in for about 80% of people was just sucky I cannot wait for it in Feb 10

Araxes

01-07-2010, 11:55 AM

I am really looking forward to this.Ara

Froed20

01-07-2010, 12:27 PM

<cite>Karnos@Nektulos wrote:</cite><blockquote>Hm... According to the preview text, the whole contested zone can be done by two to four characters and the instances are, respectively, easy to moderate, moderate, and moderate in challenge level. So, am I wrong in assuming that there isn't any contested six-person group content at all and that the instances are going to be completely trivial to raiders in raid gear? If so, that is highly disappointing. I initially got the impression that at least one of the three wings of The Hole would be aimed entirely at solid six-person groups. What happened to that notion?In light of the (supposedly) trivial nature of the Hole content, is the quality of the dropped items going to be toned down accordingly? I mean, you can hardly expect the tier 9 equivalent of fabled TSO zone drops from content that doesn't even require a full group, let alone a well-geared/played one.</blockquote>They said the contested area was 2-4 people, but they never stated the same about the instances. It's probably a safe bet that they're gonna be full group instances, if not at least 4-6. Yeah, raiders will breeze through those zones, but they breeze through most of the leveling content anyways. I'm sure they'll have a few high difficuilty zones at 90 that'll give everyone some trouble.On a side note... I'm really hoping they kept the cliff-diving entrance in the game. That was probably the best part of the zone, flinging myself down that pit, zoning, and then leaving a frog-shaped crater in the middle of the zone. The Ground hits YOU for 350,000,000 damageYOU have died.

feldon30

01-07-2010, 12:36 PM

You mean this? <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /><img src="http://eq2wire.feldoncentral.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/EQ2Wire-thehole01med.jpg" width="670" height="419" />

Calthine

01-07-2010, 02:21 PM

Looks familiar, doesn't it? I remember when I got the Bard Song that let me survive that on my own!

Kiara

01-07-2010, 02:44 PM

<cite>Karnos@Nektulos wrote:</cite><blockquote>Hm... According to the preview text, the whole contested zone can be done by two to four characters and the instances are, respectively, easy to moderate, moderate, and moderate in challenge level. So, am I wrong in assuming that there isn't any contested six-person group content at all and that the instances are going to be completely trivial to raiders in raid gear? If so, that is highly disappointing. I initially got the impression that at least one of the three wings of The Hole would be aimed entirely at solid six-person groups. What happened to that notion?In light of the (supposedly) trivial nature of the Hole content, is the quality of the dropped items going to be toned down accordingly? I mean, you can hardly expect the tier 9 equivalent of fabled TSO zone drops from content that doesn't even require a full group, let alone a well-geared/played one.</blockquote>Perhaps it would behoove you to actually experience the content before drawing your conclusions, rather than reading a LOT of random subtext into a preview article before drawing your conclusions and deeming something worthless and unnecessary?You're making a lot of unfounded assumptions and trashing something that you haven't even seen yet, let alone played through. I'd hold off on leaping to conclusions <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

SOE-Brasse

01-07-2010, 03:18 PM

I remember well when I started an Erudite paladin in EverQuest. I was playing on a dial-up connection (hey, it was 1999!) and lag hitches were pretty common. For those dwelling along the edge of the Hole, these hitches were terrible things. I made it to about level nine when the inevitable happened. I zoned in, started running, and hitched... right into The Hole.There is nothing so devastating as that long, slow, graceful fall to the zone line... a pause to recollect the short life of your character as The Hole loads, followed by a small, pathetic crunch as your avatar hits the ground.Now, back in the day, all my life's savings were on that character. I didn't have any uber-levelled characters to fund my purchases. Every 4 slot bag and torch required hours of virtual labor, and there it was, gone. I had twenty four hours to recover my corpse or all would be lost.I begged and searched in chat channels for hours, until I had to log off for sleep, as the hours remaining ticked away. The choices were a higher level Necromancer who could summon your corpse, or a strong group of players who can escort you to the spot, which was not an easy task. There were plenty of mercenary Necros around, but I could barely afford the cost of the coffin reagent required, never mind the exorbitant fees they wanted. Finally, the next morning, having almost given up hope, I was contacted by a group of high levels (well, high as compared to myself, as it was still early in the game) responded to my roleplayed pleas and we spent an hour and a half recovering that corpse. No one knew the zone well, and it was just at their level range; a scary experience for all as they tried to intercept all attacks along the way before the creatures got to me. I ended up recovering four corpses that day... the original and three more made along the way.I have come a long way since then. Would I even bother going after a level eight corpse and goods now? Oh heck no... but it was part of the experience back in the early days, and while I cannot remember even one name of that group of rescuers, I remember their kindness, patience and understanding on that hellish quest as one of my finest experiences in EverQuest. If any of them remembers a lost little Erud corpse named Fuji, then I would love to thank them properly.The Hole. I went back later and recovered some pride, let me tell you. Cleared that zone and then some, when I was strong enough. It felt good.I am so ready to go back as my powerful Dwarven self in EQII and rediscover The Hole... and kick some butt there!;-)#Brasse

Solarax

01-07-2010, 10:48 PM

praise feather fall cloaks =)

Jynnan

01-08-2010, 06:23 AM

In EQ, The Hole was the only place in Norrath where featherfall DIDN'T work. Is that still the same with this new Hole I wonder? <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/136dd33cba83140c7ce38db096d05aed.gif" border="0" />

BleemTeam

01-08-2010, 06:37 PM

It was nearly impossible to get to corpses that fell into the Hole. Master Yael would Deathtouch the first person that entered that cavern. If it was your tank or healer then you have another corpse run to do.Oh, how I hated that pit. Luckily I had personally never fallen in there, but I had to go help many a guild mate.

Saihung23

01-08-2010, 08:56 PM

Thats it.I am in. lol.I preordered at gamestop today.:)That just looks intimidating and DARK:DI liked the old Nektulos zone when it was really dark. I know I can set it with my options but it isnt the same.Nek used to be ominous, lol, now its all little mary sunshine:PCan't wait.

Gninja

01-10-2010, 04:42 PM

<cite>Fayle@Mistmoore wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Karnos@Nektulos wrote:</cite><blockquote>Hm... According to the preview text, the whole contested zone can be done by two to four characters and the instances are, respectively, easy to moderate, moderate, and moderate in challenge level. So, am I wrong in assuming that there isn't any contested six-person group content at all and that the instances are going to be completely trivial to raiders in raid gear? If so, that is highly disappointing. I initially got the impression that at least one of the three wings of The Hole would be aimed entirely at solid six-person groups. What happened to that notion?In light of the (supposedly) trivial nature of the Hole content, is the quality of the dropped items going to be toned down accordingly? I mean, you can hardly expect the tier 9 equivalent of fabled TSO zone drops from content that doesn't even require a full group, let alone a well-geared/played one.</blockquote>They said the contested area was 2-4 people, but they never stated the same about the instances. It's probably a safe bet that they're gonna be full group instances, if not at least 4-6. Yeah, raiders will breeze through those zones, but they breeze through most of the leveling content anyways. I'm sure they'll have a few high difficuilty zones at 90 that'll give everyone some trouble.On a side note... I'm really hoping they kept the cliff-diving entrance in the game. That was probably the best part of the zone, flinging myself down that pit, zoning, and then leaving a frog-shaped crater in the middle of the zone. The Ground hits YOU for 350,000,000 damageYOU have died.</blockquote>Commenting on what is in red above:The instances are intended to be for full 6 person groups. You can indeed jump into the Hole and get zoned in <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

aislynn00

01-10-2010, 10:22 PM

<cite>Gninja wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Fayle@Mistmoore wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Karnos@Nektulos wrote:</cite><blockquote>Hm... According to the preview text, the whole contested zone can be done by two to four characters and the instances are, respectively, easy to moderate, moderate, and moderate in challenge level. So, am I wrong in assuming that there isn't any contested six-person group content at all and that the instances are going to be completely trivial to raiders in raid gear? If so, that is highly disappointing. I initially got the impression that at least one of the three wings of The Hole would be aimed entirely at solid six-person groups. What happened to that notion?In light of the (supposedly) trivial nature of the Hole content, is the quality of the dropped items going to be toned down accordingly? I mean, you can hardly expect the tier 9 equivalent of fabled TSO zone drops from content that doesn't even require a full group, let alone a well-geared/played one.</blockquote>They said the contested area was 2-4 people, but they never stated the same about the instances. It's probably a safe bet that they're gonna be full group instances, if not at least 4-6. Yeah, raiders will breeze through those zones, but they breeze through most of the leveling content anyways. I'm sure they'll have a few high difficuilty zones at 90 that'll give everyone some trouble.On a side note... I'm really hoping they kept the cliff-diving entrance in the game. That was probably the best part of the zone, flinging myself down that pit, zoning, and then leaving a frog-shaped crater in the middle of the zone. The Ground hits YOU for 350,000,000 damageYOU have died.</blockquote>Commenting on what is in red above:The instances are intended to be for full 6 person groups. You can indeed jump into the Hole and get zoned in <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /></blockquote>The instances are intended for six-person full groups but are of "moderate" difficulty? Would that be the equivalent of, say, The Crucible or Najena's Hollow Tower, zones that are easily doable with less than a full group? If so, are there going to be other instances in the expansion catering to players with max AA and at least full legendary or partially fabled gear, or will the expansion instead exclusively feature what to those people would constitute solo and small-group content, leaving them with nothing meaningful to do with a full group? Personally, I was hoping for more zones with a challenge level on par with Palace of Fezhul, Outer Stronghold, Necrotic Asylum, Atrebe's Laboratory, etc.

Legion11

01-11-2010, 02:33 AM

<cite>SOE-Brasse wrote:</cite><blockquote>I remember well when I started an Erudite paladin in EverQuest. I was playing on a dial-up connection (hey, it was 1999!) and lag hitches were pretty common. For those dwelling along the edge of the Hole, these hitches were terrible things. I made it to about level nine when the inevitable happened. I zoned in, started running, and hitched... right into The Hole.There is nothing so devastating as that long, slow, graceful fall to the zone line... a pause to recollect the short life of your character as The Hole loads, followed by a small, pathetic crunch as your avatar hits the ground.Now, back in the day, all my life's savings were on that character. I didn't have any uber-levelled characters to fund my purchases. Every 4 slot bag and torch required hours of virtual labor, and there it was, gone. I had twenty four hours to recover my corpse or all would be lost.I begged and searched in chat channels for hours, until I had to log off for sleep, as the hours remaining ticked away. The choices were a higher level Necromancer who could summon your corpse, or a strong group of players who can escort you to the spot, which was not an easy task. There were plenty of mercenary Necros around, but I could barely afford the cost of the coffin reagent required, never mind the exorbitant fees they wanted. Finally, the next morning, having almost given up hope, I was contacted by a group of high levels (well, high as compared to myself, as it was still early in the game) responded to my roleplayed pleas and we spent an hour and a half recovering that corpse. No one knew the zone well, and it was just at their level range; a scary experience for all as they tried to intercept all attacks along the way before the creatures got to me. I ended up recovering four corpses that day... the original and three more made along the way.I have come a long way since then. Would I even bother going after a level eight corpse and goods now? Oh heck no... but it was part of the experience back in the early days, and while I cannot remember even one name of that group of rescuers, I remember their kindness, patience and understanding on that hellish quest as one of my finest experiences in EverQuest. If any of them remembers a lost little Erud corpse named Fuji, then I would love to thank them properly.The Hole. I went back later and recovered some pride, let me tell you. Cleared that zone and then some, when I was strong enough. It felt good.I am so ready to go back as my powerful Dwarven self in EQII and rediscover The Hole... and kick some butt there!<img src="/smilies/8a80c6485cd926be453217d59a84a888.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />#Brasse</blockquote>Awesome story Brasse. I think everyone that played EQ has similar tales - even though many of them were nightmares, they still remain indelibly imprinted in our minds today. I could tell a story of an Unrest group along the same lines, but it wouldn't be substantially different from your own.There was something about EQ that really got the blood racing. Perhaps because it was the first, true, great MMO - I just don't think those kind of pulse-pounding moments can ever be duplicated.

Dreyco

01-11-2010, 02:36 AM

I'm happy to hear that they're making this expansion much more accessible to the majority of their playerbase <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> . Some of the zones for TSO were a little over the top.

Solarax

01-11-2010, 02:52 AM

Dreyco

01-11-2010, 02:55 AM

<cite>Soulskar@Splitpaw wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Dreyco wrote:</cite><blockquote>I'm happy to hear that they're making this expansion much more accessible to the majority of their playerbase <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /> . Some of the zones for TSO were a little over the top.</blockquote>?not that much solo content if that is what you are refurring to .If you are refurring to needing less players in 1 zone i guess i can see that as being ok until people are geared up.</blockquote>I'm talking about most of the zones pretty much being "open" only to those who had either full sets of the best gear, or raid gear. And even then, being a royal pain in the butt, if not completely out of reach to a lot of folks <img src="/smilies/9d71f0541cff0a302a0309c5079e8dee.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

feldon30

01-11-2010, 11:40 AM

I'm sure there will still be some zones that require 6 players in full gear. But maybe it will be a smaller percentage of the 12 dungeons. Also realize that 6 or 8 of the scaling dungeons from TSO will be available in the expansion. I'm not sure how those zones will scale though.

Solarax

01-11-2010, 11:56 AM

in the end or should i say begining. level> gear so so we can expect a rush of people that already have good gear to pace ahead but until then it will be a little dificult to speculate as our old TSO zones will still be usefull for xp because of scaling and if you are on the verge of some t3-4 gear might as well finish it off before moving on or bank the stuff for an alt.my real concern is with solo content being done in a week or less as there are so few solo quests . RoK was great in this respect except for most people felt they had to do the quest lines to get xp because the xp was better than a grind in group in 1 spot ( which to me is more boring anyways but some like to sit there and mash)oh and looking hidious on the new collectors mounts for low levels ( if i dont cancel collectors edition because of the whole " $30 more for a statless UGLY mount" thing)up until now i have been in every beta on at least one of my accounts and this is the first time i havent been invited but it annoys me that some people are getting invites multiple times and some ( those active on boards that do make thoughtfull comments ) should be but are not.

Calthine

01-11-2010, 02:30 PM

<cite>Soulskar@Splitpaw wrote:</cite><blockquote>up until now i have been in every beta on at least one of my accounts and this is the first time i havent been invited but it annoys me that some people are getting invites multiple times and some ( those active on boards that do make thoughtfull comments ) should be but are not.</blockquote>Except for the forum contests, it's a random draw.

Solarax

01-11-2010, 03:18 PM

actually its not completely random draw. they have allotted slots they get to fill as well. not that im popular enough to get one but in the end even for those that are random still use up a slot for each invite that goes out so an individual that gets 3 invites is taking up 3 slots for that round.

BleemTeam

01-11-2010, 05:20 PM

I sort of think its first come first server, if you have no marks on your account, etc. Obviously, there are special invites sent out as well, but for the waves of invites, I think its pretty straight forward. I cannot comment on why I would think that, however.

Solarax

01-11-2010, 06:03 PM

its not first come first serve.good accounts and signed up within minutes of the beta opening.

Chikkin

01-11-2010, 09:30 PM

<cite>Gninja wrote:</cite><blockquote>You can indeed jump into the Hole and get zoned in <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /></blockquote>!!!!How do you get to The Hole?/cue Van Halen's JumpGo Ahead and Jump! Jump!Might as well jump! Jump!

TerrorFirmer

01-11-2010, 09:58 PM

<cite>Dreyco wrote:</cite><blockquote>I'm happy to hear that they're making this expansion much more accessible to the majority of their playerbase <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /> . Some of the zones for TSO were a little over the top.</blockquote>That's how it should be, in my opinion.Hard(est) zones: POF, Ykesha's Outer StrongholdHard zones: Lower Corridors, JW: EA (only for the last 4 named, the rest is easy to the point of nearly trivial).Moderate zones: Atrebes, Ravenscale RepositoryEasy zones: All of lavastorm, all of everfrost, all of loping plains except for ravenscale, OOA, AOB, Veksar, Nuroga.I'm sure I forgot some zones, maybe, I'm not entirely focused. But I'd say the majority of the instances were easy, even in less than stellar gear the ones I have labled as easy are entirely doable. If you make all of the content trivial there is no place to grow to, and people get bored later on in the expansion. Heck, I think that POF is trivial, and YOS to an extent with the right group. I understand that not all players can tackle the content like that, but I'd actually prefer it to be more evently distributed to about 1/3 entrylevel, 1/3 midrange, and 1/3 DIFFICULT. That way there is at least room to grow.Casuals forget that there is a large percentage of the population that gets extremely bored doing the same 2 instances for a challenge. If you can't handle the simple scripts in the majority of the dungeons then I am not sure what to say... go back to soloing?

Kendricke

01-12-2010, 06:01 PM

<cite>Dreyco wrote:</cite><blockquote>I'm talking about most of the zones pretty much being "open" only to those who had either full sets of the best gear, or raid gear. And even then, being a royal pain in the butt, if not completely out of reach to a lot of folks <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/9d71f0541cff0a302a0309c5079e8dee.gif" border="0" /></blockquote>"Most" zones? Which zones did you feel required "either full sets of the best gear, or raid gear"? I can assure you that I've run "most" of the zones in Shadow Odyssey with secondaries who were (in some cases) woefully undergeared. Let's take a look here, shall we?<ul><li>Moors of Ykesha (pretty sure this zone didn't require full sets of the best gear or raid gear)</li><li>Obelisk of Ahkzul? Anchor of Bazzhul? Members of my guild have soloed or duoed both of these zones in nothing more than crafted, brokered, or shard purchased gear. </li><li>Deep Forge? Najena's Hollow Tower? Scion of Ice? Evernight Abbey? The Anathema? Nuroga? Again, members of my guild have run each of these zones with undergeared pick-up groups and with undergeared secondary characters. </li><li>Befallen: Halls of the Forsaken, Mystmyr Manor, Ykesha's Lower Corridors, and Veksar are only slightly harder and would require a bit more skill - but can be done without raid gear or full sets of Tier 2. </li></ul>That's at least nine zones so far that I would consider very easy or easy with another four that I would consider moderate to hard. I can absolutely confirm that none of these zones require so much as a mythical or raid level gear...or even a full group. It's ONLY when you get to the zones past these that you have to start really concerning yourself with gear or AA points. That meant that the original overland zone and more than half of the instances are available to relatively unskilled or ungeared players. That accessibility goes up further as you progress through the zones and gain more AA and shards. In fact, only a very small handful of group zones had any serious gear or AA requirements at all.