Old school EQ player here, looking for some basic opinions and thoughts on EQ2...

[EdgeOfThorns]

Hey all, just looking for some up to date opinions on EQ2 pretty much. What to expect is pretty much a huge question i have.I loved the original EQ, was there day 1 and i just returned too it the other day. But i cant help but be tempted to sneak some EQ2 into the mix since i never really got too it. Im the kind that loves the journey through the leveling process, is there a fairly good experience to be had in working towards cap in EQ2? Is it even remotely like the original EQ in atmosphere and just overall feel?

Looking for some thoughts and opinions really, thanks in advance.

[theriatis]

Hi Edge,

as i never played EQ, i can just give you some Thoughts of the EQ2 Experience today:

1. It's easy. Leveling is easy, the Opponents are easy (my Lvl 42 Alts can handle everything up to yellow heroics).There is not much raiding in lower levels, so stick to solo and, if you're a little ahead in Levels, heroic content (Properlyequipped and AA'd).

2. If you enjoy the ride - you're right. There is so much to see, so much quests to do, so much to collect (shinies), so much to read (Books). The first few tiers have so much content that you will be overwhelmed as new player. I'mcurrently stuck at 4200+ Quests.

3. If you like to craft then go for it. Not only a Primary Crafter class is selectable, you can also train on a Tinkerer and Adorner. So much time, and the Crafting Quests are neat (eq2traders has an overview).

I would say, take a look, make yourself a Silver Account (just five bucks) and see for yourself.

Regards, theriatis.

[Halo of G4]

Two radically different games with two radically different game mechanics.

I say give it a try. It's a far cry in terms of what it started out from with revamp after revamp in mechanics, but nontheless a great game.

[Lizzoraus]

The game doesn't play like original EQ at all but that's really kind of a good thing. It's faster moving & more inviting to casual players. There's a huge amount of content, even most of the old outdated content is worth running for the AA experience you'll get from it. It's definitally worth a shot, especially when it's free

[EdgeOfThorns]

Definitely cool to hear guys.What about classes, can you guys just throw me a quick rundown of some of them? I pretty much am into big time caster dps classes, and melee dps.There is a lot of classes to choose from which is good and bad for me hah because i never can pick just one.  I most likely would be doing most of it solo until i get further in, are wizards fairly cool in EQ2?

[7foggynites]

EdgeOfThorns wrote:

Hey all, just looking for some up to date opinions on EQ2 pretty much. What to expect is pretty much a huge question i have.I loved the original EQ, was there day 1 and i just returned too it the other day. But i cant help but be tempted to sneak some EQ2 into the mix since i never really got too it. Im the kind that loves the journey through the leveling process, is there a fairly good experience to be had in working towards cap in EQ2? Is it even remotely like the original EQ in atmosphere and just overall feel?

Looking for some thoughts and opinions really, thanks in advance.

I know exactly where you're coming from, I think.

I started in March 1999. I played a ranger on Rallos Zek. I played until 2008 on the pvp server(s).

I think the first few expansions very much have the feel of the original everquest game. If you're hte type of player that likes to go off the beaten path and you're an EQ1 diehard then don't rush to 90. Break the rules that the developers push you to follow.

Progression-wise, you have to control the tempo somewhat. It's annoying, but doable. Me, I shut off combat/quest experience and set stat goals to reach before levelling further. Otherwise, it seems to move by much too quickly. All of the content is new to me so I'm definitely not wanting to get to 90 anytime soon. Unfortunately, you can't stop the AA's from building up as you complete more quests. I don't know what happens when AA's are maxed and both combat and quest experience is shut off, maybe someone else does. So far, the pace is fine.

There're a LOT of quests and the gameplay is more quest-based. So prepare to adjust to it. There're voiceovers and the overall quality of things is pretty good. You can choose to start in the new player zones and follow the golden path:

http://eq2.zam.com/wiki/The_Golden_Path

The experience is supposed to be very consistent and yields less frustration. However, if you want the fully experience all of EQ2, you have to explore the other areas and not just follow this path because it's really just made to level you up and reduce whatever the developers think is wasted time. They dress it all up in fancy reassuring words, but it's too fake for me and feels forced.

I started in the New Halas new-player are and levelled until about level 10. Then I left and went to Qeynos and did things until level 14 and then I went to Greater Faydark. Soon I'll be going back to Antonica and finish some quests and checkout the dungeons. I'm 15 atm. (You may have to use a few golden path zones if you're only doing quest experience. At least this is why I went to greater faydark.)

I'd actually recommend doing the golden path zones just for the lore and achievements. So don't skip them, ultimately.

Shattered Lands was the content that was released when EQ2 launched.

I made a list of the Shattered Lands content here (I did not include hte Golden Path zones):

10+ The Commonlands10+ Antonica10+ Wailing Caves, Commonlands15+ Blackburrow (dungeon), Antonica16+ Stormhold (dungeon), Antonica18+ The Crypt of Betray (dungeon), Vermin's Snye18+ Fallen Gate (dungeon), Commonlands20+ Thundering Steppes20+ Nektulos Forest25+ The Vault of the Fallen (dungeon, group, lockout), Fallen Gate25+ Ruins of Varsoon (dungeon), Thundering Steppes, Chamber of Immortality30+ Enchanted Lands30+ Zek, the Orcish Wastes30+ Runnyeye (dungeon), Enchanted Lands, The Chamber of Rulgax, Overlord's Throne Room30+ Chamber of Immortality (dungeon, group, lockout), Ruins of Varsoon35+ The Feerrott35+ Rivervale35+ Overlord's Throne Room (dungeon, group, lockout), Runnyeye37+ The Temple of Cazic-Thule (dungeon), The Feerrott, The Sanctum of Fear: Niscanith's Lair, Sanctum of Fear, Chamber of the Keeper37+ Chamber of the Keeper (dungoen, group), The Temple of Cazic-Thule40+ Everfrost40+ The Chamber of Rulgax (dungeon, group, lockout), Runnyeye42+ Nagafen's Lair (dungeon, group), Solusek's Eye45+ Permafrost (dungeon), Everfrost45+ Sanctum of Fear (dungeon, group, lockout), The Temple of Cazic-Thule45+ The Sanctum of Fear: Niscanith's Lair (dungeon, raid, lockout), The Temple of Cazic-Thule45+ Solusek's Eye (dungeon), Lavastorm, Bastion of Flames, The Oratorium of Thyr, The Sanctum of Fire, Nagafen's Lair45+ The Oratorium of Thyr (dungeon, group, lockout), Solusek's Eye, Nagafen's Lair46+ The Sanctum of Fire (dungeon, group, lockout), Temple of Solusek Ro50+ The Lesser Faydark55+ Bastion of Flames (dungeon, group, lockout), Solusek's Eye

Keeep in mind ther're several expansions. So this is the tip of hte iceberg....

The game is huge unfortunately mudflation kills most of it unless you modulate your gameplay. You'll pass straight through most things fast if you do it the way the devleopers wnat you to. Then the only way to really experience hte game is to mentor down to a low level and one-hit everything and not have any use for the loot and you junk it. That's not my idea of fun. That my be fun to somebody who's ALREADY seen most of hte early game, but for me everything is new so I don't wnat to skip all those zones or one-hit everythig.

Playing slow like this in the earliest content is a lot like playing on a progression server. But you have to set your own goals and research the game so you know where to go. The game isn't made to specifically be played this way, so you have to be inventive.

[7foggynites]

EdgeOfThorns wrote:

Definitely cool to hear guys.What about classes, can you guys just throw me a quick rundown of some of them? I pretty much am into big time caster dps classes, and melee dps.There is a lot of classes to choose from which is good and bad for me hah because i never can pick just one.  I most likely would be doing most of it solo until i get further in, are wizards fairly cool in EQ2?

If you want to try em all for a month then get a gold membership. It's the only way to know for sure.

There're four base classes: Fighter, Priest, Mage, Scout.

Scouts are melee dps-oriented and Mages are caster dps-oriented.

Swashbucklers very good melee dps with some extra flexibility and they're f2p. Brigands are also f2p and might have more value in groups because of their ability to weaken the enemy and still offer a lot of dps. Bards offer more support. Rangers are good dps too, but trade aoe's and/or weaken abilities for ranged dps. All of the scouts can insta-invis with sneak which is nice to have. They have Escape too.

Not sure aobut the casters. But it's hard to make a bad choice, imho. The classes are somewhat cookie cutter.

Another thing I'd like to say is that in EQ1 spells and actions felt like two different things. But in EQ2 they both somehow feel interchangeable. When I play in EQ2, spells behave exactly like actions when I use them. You put actions/spells in hotkey bars from your knowledge book.

Also... auto-attack isn't the primary form of damage, so to speak. You have to use actions/spells. Generally, it's like having a bunch of kick/taunt buttons. Sometimes you use them strategically, but it's very repetitive most of the time - redundant. There're heroic combo's or somethign, but I haven't used those much. Overall, I'm still too low level to judge it empirically, so what I say is subject to change.

Oh... you know how in EQ1 you look forward to new skills when you gain levels? Like double attack? That's not really there in EQ2. Rather than looking forward to a new skill, you're looking forward to a new spell or action. And yer not sure what level it'll be when you get it next. You still get new skills, but they're not so important somehow. Eq2 still has parry and double attack and so on. It's just invisible. I think part of hte reason for that is you don't train at a grandmaster and see the level req (eq1). It's trained automatically when you level.

And skills gain real fast. But they gained quickly in EQ1 too so it's not really noticeable. I never really "got" the whole idea of skill gain because it's so boring and not interactive. I'm choice-oriented, so I love interactivity and tactics. But when skills gain arbitrarily based on some random number or time limit, it's very boring and I think that's why skill gain is so fast and invisible in EQ2/EQ1. This isn't entirely true in EQ1 or EQ2 for tradeskills, though. They still rise slowly. But in EQ2 tradeskills are much more developed and rich.

One last thing... in EQ1 you really worried about crowd control. Players still worry about crowd control EQ2 too, but since it's more solo-heavy in the game prior to endgame then it's much less of a concern. It's more about looking at the target and making sure if it's heroic or not and whether it has adds. In EQ2 it tells you what you'll aggro when you pull a specific target - so there's never any doubt about what you'll get. This is nice, but not like in EQ1 where you had to really get a good look at the camp and nearby spawns to estimate aggro. And when you pull from a distance any pathers that're near your target(s) won't also aggro unless you directly aggro them via proximity.

[Rainmare]

as to your question on classes for a melee dps/caster dps orient...Wizards/Warlocks/Rangers/Assassins/Beastlords are the real big heavy hitters.

beastlors in eq2 are similar to their eq1 roots in that they have monk style weapons/melee dps and thier pet...but that's about where it stops.

the BL is HEAVY dependant on that pet. prolly 90% of his damamge is form the pet proccing 'weakness' and using advatage/primal talents that are usable only when that happens.

there are 2 'stances' for Bls. spiritual: the primals and advantages are usually buffs/mana regens/heals and feral: all the advatanges are debuffs/damage.

alot of the 'core' eq1 classes have been cut in half. like Enchanters (illusionist/Coercer in eq2) for example. illusionsts get the chanty pet....but only coercers get Charm/dire charm. illy got all the caster oriented bufs, Coe got the melee ones.

which is how they did wiz and warlock. wiz is all about heat/cold single target damage. warlock is all about poison/disease AE damage.

conjy is a mage from EQ1. very similar in style, as is the necro.

rangers in eq2 seem a bit more durable thier thier eq1 counterpart...but are way more range focused then eq1 comparitivly i think. even thier epic weapon was a bow in EQ2 rather then a pair of swords in eq1. they seems to have given the melee focus to assassins. who also are high melee hitters.

Rogues got cut into Swashbucklers and Brigands. swashy seems more ae oriented...bring more single target.

there's lots of lore and stories. and qeynos is due a revamp here shortly so there will be even more sotry that 'unlocks' as quests become available at higher tiers of level. ie starts at 20 and goes up by tens to 90

[Shadeyblades]

I didn't play the first everquest. I can tell you all who used to play the first will tell you this is different, but I have yet to find a eq1'r not like eq2.

EQ2 has so many options. Skip to the end and powerlevel or take your sweet time with it. It is free to try..to level 90 just give it a go!

[Regolas]

I played eq1 from launch to the (then) cap of level 70. I raided through PoP before RL took over as a wizard and cleric, but I also dabbled with warrior, rogue and beastlord. I can't say what eq1 was like after that, I have heard leveling got easier and soloing became viable for all classes, but I don't know, so my comparisons are from that stage of eq1 and not what it is now. I only started playing eq2 about 3 years ago also. I have a max level ranger and a few alts I'm leveling up. Firstly, leveling and progression is much easier and more casual friendly than eq1 is (or at least was when I played). There's tons of questlines that take you through overland zones that were designed for soloing or the occasional duo/trio. They tell good stories, give reasonable loot, and it's quite possible to level all the way to 92 without stepping foot in a dungeon. I loved doing this the first time round and it constantly gives you goals to achieve that I just didn't have towards the end of my playing days on eq1. This is what hooked me on eq2. There's a lot of similar places to eq1 that bring back the nostalgia. Another hook for me. Classes are similar but different. Like someone said, they're split into two mostly although not exclusively. They're supposed to be a good and an evil version but quite often for utility classes, one will be caster utility and one will be melee utility, and for priests one will be more melee based and one will be more spell based. Bards are troubadors (caster utility) or dirges (melee) Druids are wardens (melee) or fury (caster) Clerics are templars (caster) or inquisitor (melee) Shamans are mystic (melee?) or defiler (caster?) Enchanters are coercer (melee) or illusionist (caster) Wizards are split into wizard (single target) or warlock (area effect) Warriors are guardians (defence tank) or beserker (offence tank) Rogues are Assassins and Rangers are rangers, but they're lumped under the Predator archtype. Sks are SKs and Paladins are Paladins, lumped under Crusaders Magician are Conjurors and Necros are Necros Swashbucklers and Brigands are new compared to my eq1 time, they're your muscateer/pirate classes And then Beastlords are like eq1 Beastlords All are only really similar in names and a few class defining attributes on some (like mage/necro pets, rangers using bows, assassins backstabbing, druids hugging trees, etc) . Their abilities are totally different to eq1 but not rocket science by ant means. Give it a go, I love eq2 and as I don't have the time to play both, I chose eq2 and haven't looked back. There's always something to do until you hit max level and after that it's relatively easy to roll another character and experience 90% new content by going about a different path to different zones. With mercenaries you can even experience heroic dungeons at the appropriate level even if there isn't the playerbase at your level to form groups.

[EdgeOfThorns]

Great info guys, i appreciate it. So heres my question, i only see the gold option which is fine...but i would of loved to pick silver, just to stride a bit with the game and then most likely go gold. But i cant make a ranger currently, is going gold the only option at first? Just need to know, if its like you gotta go gold to cut back to silver thats fine, i just want to know before i drop the 15 clams.

[Regolas]

Silver membership should be there, if not, you may already have it. It won't be in the recurring membership section where gold is though. It will not give you more classes though. Each class and a trio of races can be unlocked by buying an unlocker in the marketplace. So you can buy the ranger class for like $5. Three races for another $5. Gold gives unrestricted access, but only while gold. So if you go gold, pick a locked class, then revert to silver, then it will be locked and you can only access it by paying to unlock it or going gold again.

[EdgeOfThorns]

Thanks for the info Regolas.Im level 9 so far with my wizard and what saddens me is that i didnt dive into this game sooner. Man, im loving it. Im still playing the original EQ as well which holds that special place in my heart hah...but im loving this, it has just just right amount of classic EQ sounds and feels, and atmosphere thats really drawing me in.Heres a question,  what is the best 2H class? Just getting an idea for in the future really.

[Regolas]

Glad you're liking it, I felt the same way when I started. It's worth scouring the marketplace for that silver membership. It gives you more bag slots on your character and bank and is totally worth $5. You also get more chat channel options, etc. I would personally buy the class unlocker rather than go gold at first. The only real drawback of not being gold once you have decided on your class and race, is that you can't sell stuff on the broker. This can mean you can't generate much money but I'll give you a hint that I wish I knew when I started: transmute everything. This is a skill in your spell book under abilities that lets you break down treasured or better gear into components used to make adornments. These adornments are required at max level so it pays to have your transmuting skill maxed so you can get the components needed to make them. The other main restrictions (money limit and restrictions on wearing legendary or better gear) isn't a real issue until level 60, and you can manage to over 80 using treasured gear. Best 2H class? Really debatable. Many classes that can use 2 handers use dual wield or shield for extra stats. If it's just for the look, at level 20 you can put a 2 hander in the appearance slot but wield whatever gives you more stats/damage.

[Regolas]

The reason i say go silver first and buy the class unlocker is that if you decide for a few months you don't want to pay for gold you can still play your character. If you went gold then decide that and your class is locked you have to buy the unlocker anyway. Better to spend $10 on silver and a class unlocker in the first month than $15 for gold then another $5 to unlock if you decide not to stay gold permanently

[EdgeOfThorns]

I definitely will do that, thats for sure.Just getting the feel of some stuff, i fired up a swashbuckler here as well...now in the current state of the game,  are they doing pretty good? Or is assassin clearly the way to go with a stealth class such as this?Im sort of getting my sights set on leveling my wizard or doing a stealther here. All i know is that this is a sweet game, even the overall feel is so much better than "that other" game, its just deeper feeling and has so much more atmosphere.Edit: See im in the marketplace, and im having trouble finding the class unlocker. Or did you mean to unlock the ones i would be interested in for 750 station bucks?

[PotatoeGuru]

Have you considered giving the Station Access a try? If you currently are paying 14.99 for an EQ account, adding $5 more will unlock everything in EQ2 and grant you access to other games as well.

http://www.soe.com/allaccess/

[Regolas]

I mean unlock the individual class you're wanting to play. If you're not sure and just want to test them, then going gold and trying them is cheaper than unlocking multiple classes at 750sc a time. Swashbuckers are a good class. They all have their plusses and minuses.

[EdgeOfThorns]

Brigh@Guk wrote:

Have you considered giving the Station Access a try? If you currently are paying 14.99 for an EQ account, adding $5 more will unlock everything in EQ2 and grant you access to other games as well.

http://www.soe.com/allaccess/

This here is actually perfect. Now will it tie in both of my seperate accounts? I think i might of made a mistake there, i have my old EQ account...and then i have my EQ 2 account, would it grab the two and merge them?

[Regolas]

No you'd have to use the same account for both. No problem though, you just use your second account (your current eq2 account) as a free account for 2 boxing!

[EdgeOfThorns]

So i setup my all access account, perfect..that imho is a deal you cant beat there. So my main question right now is what are the big differences between swash and assassins? I seen someone mention that assassins are best melee dps in the game, that sound accurate?

[Regolas]

Assassins use rear attacks and stealth attacks to cause the most damage. When soloing you won't be able to do max dps. You need the mob concentrating on someone else. Swashbuckers do more of their damage from the front and in area effect damage. Both bring a few useful buffs to a group (hate transfer) that rangers don't.

[EdgeOfThorns]

Are assassins though good at least leveling to cap or is it one of the harder classes to level on up due to their combat style?

All i know is im like a kid in a candy store with the game now that i got gold hah...so many classes to try, looking to clamp down on two of my favs and start truckin.

[Regolas]

Scouts in general are harder to level up solo as they can't tank well and can't heal. Melee scouts are the hardest as you have to be in melee range to kill stuff (whereas a ranger and mages can keep things away from them while still killing them). So then if you are a melee scout, the amount of dps makes the difference (a mob that dies quicker hurts you less). Swashbuckers are probably slightly better soloing because their attacks aren't so dependent on positioning. Having said all that, the overland zones all have mostly solo designed mobs that any class should be able to solo easily. If you buy the latest expansion pack (AoD), you can hire mercenaries to help you too, if you find yourself struggling. My opinion, play the class you like the idea of, rather than worrying about what's easier to level. If it's between swashbuckler or assassin, do you like the idea of a fancy swordfighter or a stealthy rogue? I picked a ranger first as I liked the idea of rangers from eq1 and the lord of the rings movies. And I love the class. Now I'm at cap, I decided to roll out a tank and a healer so I could offer tanking, healing or dps to a group. I picked a beserker because I liked the concept of crazy adrenaline pumping tank. I also picked an inquisitor as they seem like the most melee based healer in plate. I'm also leveling my brothers warden on his account. I didn't choose that class but it's quite fun.

[EdgeOfThorns]

I am thoroughly loving this game. I been around MMOs a long time, and i think EQ has the absolute best game world out there goin. I been in all the games, whether its the older mmos like AC, DAOC, up to newer titles like Aion, Rift etc...been there to them all, spent a good bit of time too...and i always have my mind come back to Everquest and the world that they created.And this game is no different. I do think that the WoW quest style needs to fade in current MMOs, i think its way overdone...but that is a minor issue, and one i have to just accept.The bottom line is, no games seem to have the depth and enjoyment that EQ games give me and im amazed i never got into EQ 2 earlier...i really am.Not that it seems like its dead or anything but it is a bummer to see a game that has this much goodness, and these boards to be fairly slow. I guess i missed the mad rush of the game, which sucks but im glad to see that they arent stopping from the looks of it.But really, in terms of MMOs...EQ and from the little EQ2 ive played so far, are two of the best simply having such a great world that has been crafted for both games.

[Elebu]

EdgeOfThorns wrote:

I am thoroughly loving this game. I been around MMOs a long time, and i think EQ has the absolute best game world out there goin. I been in all the games, whether its the older mmos like AC, DAOC, up to newer titles like Aion, Rift etc...been there to them all, spent a good bit of time too...and i always have my mind come back to Everquest and the world that they created.And this game is no different. I do think that the WoW quest style needs to fade in current MMOs, i think its way overdone...but that is a minor issue, and one i have to just accept.The bottom line is, no games seem to have the depth and enjoyment that EQ games give me and im amazed i never got into EQ 2 earlier...i really am.Not that it seems like its dead or anything but it is a bummer to see a game that has this much goodness, and these boards to be fairly slow. I guess i missed the mad rush of the game, which sucks but im glad to see that they arent stopping from the looks of it.But really, in terms of MMOs...EQ and from the little EQ2 ive played so far, are two of the best simply having such a great world that has been crafted for both games.

EQ really started everything.  I know the WoW players like to tell you how everyone copied this and that from WoW but it just illustrates their lack of a decent grasp of history.

There was only Ultima Online (and technically Meridian 59) at the time EQ started getting out to open beta.  WoW wasn't even a scribble on a cocktail napkin at someone's favorite pub yet.

These guys - Sony, love them or hate them - wrote the book on modern MMO's.  Some of us still remember (and miss terribly) the original iteration of one of the other masterpieces that has now faded into MMO history - SWG.  These games are crafted from the top-down to incorporate intricate crafting systems, player economies and player housing among other notable firsts that other games like WoW just ripped off and "tried" to make better.

I'm glad you've joined us and welcome btw

I need to dig up some of my old EQ beta screenshots taken on the old Voodoo2 (8mb!).  I have this one shot of a group off in the distance in Antonica - spell effects lighting up the darkness - as they battled a giant.  It was truly amazing.  Does it even really get dark in MMO's anymore?? Like...Kith at night dark?

[Solarax]

to the OP, as a HC eq1 raider back in the day going to eq2 from beta i can say eq2 is easier and is getting to the point of pay to win for solo content and the current trend is to let a computer program do itemization in a cookie cutter fasion

they take hard raid content and then slowly nerf it  in steps till unskilled players can successfully raid it 8 months to a year later.

aside from the fact that SoE employees have literally been quoted as saying they Will never make Beastlords a class in eq2 and then later making them an OP DPS class , the game still has quality content

[EdgeOfThorns]

kidzulu wrote:

EdgeOfThorns wrote:

I am thoroughly loving this game. I been around MMOs a long time, and i think EQ has the absolute best game world out there goin. I been in all the games, whether its the older mmos like AC, DAOC, up to newer titles like Aion, Rift etc...been there to them all, spent a good bit of time too...and i always have my mind come back to Everquest and the world that they created.And this game is no different. I do think that the WoW quest style needs to fade in current MMOs, i think its way overdone...but that is a minor issue, and one i have to just accept.The bottom line is, no games seem to have the depth and enjoyment that EQ games give me and im amazed i never got into EQ 2 earlier...i really am.Not that it seems like its dead or anything but it is a bummer to see a game that has this much goodness, and these boards to be fairly slow. I guess i missed the mad rush of the game, which sucks but im glad to see that they arent stopping from the looks of it.But really, in terms of MMOs...EQ and from the little EQ2 ive played so far, are two of the best simply having such a great world that has been crafted for both games.

EQ really started everything.  I know the WoW players like to tell you how everyone copied this and that from WoW but it just illustrates their lack of a decent grasp of history.

There was only Ultima Online (and technically Meridian 59) at the time EQ started getting out to open beta.  WoW wasn't even a scribble on a cocktail napkin at someone's favorite pub yet.

These guys - Sony, love them or hate them - wrote the book on modern MMO's.  Some of us still remember (and miss terribly) the original iteration of one of the other masterpieces that has now faded into MMO history - SWG.  These games are crafted from the top-down to incorporate intricate crafting systems, player economies and player housing among other notable firsts that other games like WoW just ripped off and "tried" to make better.

I'm glad you've joined us and welcome btw

I need to dig up some of my old EQ beta screenshots taken on the old Voodoo2 (8mb!).  I have this one shot of a group off in the distance in Antonica - spell effects lighting up the darkness - as they battled a giant.  It was truly amazing.  Does it even really get dark in MMO's anymore?? Like...Kith at night dark?

Thanks for the welcome

I agree wholeheartidly, big time on all that you said. Thats why for me i always somehow come back to EQ in my travels, and discovering EQ 2 this late in the game sucks for me....but im glad i discovered it, and im glad that im back to the type of MMO that excites me.

[EdgeOfThorns]

Level 23, and LOVING the game guys...wow...i cant believe i never tried EQ2 earlier, man i suck.

But heres a question, what does adding DoV give me at a lower level, anything major? Im thinking of adding it. Or i guess the smarter choice is adding AoD which would give me DoV correct? Or do both need bought seperately?In anycase, im curious what they bring to the table for lower levels.

[Regolas]

You need to get both, but DoV isn't useful to 85+