A few changes happened over the last little while, some drastic (I suppose) and some not so drastic. First and foremost, I’ve switched games, again. I took a good long look at life (or lack there of) and decided to cut down my play time by a significant amount. Just because I have a house-wife life style doesn’t mean I should be dedicating a larger then normal portion of it to gaming, which was what I was quickly doing. While I am proud that my husband is able to support both of us while I take care of the home (no children to devote my time to remember) there’s still got to be ‘more’ to life. Not that ALL my time was spent gaming, but a good potion. Hopefully my readers are not too judgmental on me in that regard. Anyhow. So less play time (to me) meant that I wanted a game that took significantly less effort. I didn’t want something I could be drawn into for hours on end. Something less complex. Of course what else did that leave me with besides World of Warcraft (hah, I don’t mean for that to sound insulting, I’m aware that’s how it comes out though).

So yes, I’ve taken up residence in Azeroth (for now) as three characters on the Ravenholdt server. I have a 33 priest, 23 hunter, and 16 warlock. A few friends have decided to come play as well, for which I am eternally grateful. Growlius (who I played EQ2 as well as VG with), Zevad (from VG) and Gozad (also from VG) to name a few. If anyone else is interested in coming to play and maybe doing a few instances and what not, PLEASE feel free. I never intended on losing touch with people just because I’ve switched games (again). I’m on the horde side, and the server is a pvp / rp server. Alliance outnumbers (apparently) 3:1, but I’ve played here before and thus far am enjoying myself. I’ve got a far more limited play schedule then I was on before, which I am actually enjoying. You can typically find me in game on weekends (off and on) as well as from 7pm-10pm EST (or so) give or take a few hours here and there.

I admit, I’m one of those people waiting for the release of WAR (though honestly, I know nothing about it) just to see a new game. I’ve been slightly tired with what’s out there- I’ve been playing them for so long how could I not be.

Aside from the game stuff, I’ve started up a new blog, here. If you’re interested in reading more about me as a person and not so much me as a gamer, feel free. I’m not doing this for any particular reason other then my own personal venting mechanism. It’s therapeutic (so I’ve heard) to ramble on about boring things that no one except your family would be interested in. I’m keeping it seperate from this gaming blog because (though I know there are feeds) I’d rather not put people to sleep immediately (a good 10 seconds after reading is fine though). Some of my artwork and photography will also (hopefully) be displayed on there for people to check out. Maybe even some writing if I get brave enough, who knows.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend, where ever they gamed.

I finally finished my jeweler epic last night, thanks to the help of Gholdmoon, one of my good friends in EverQuestII. She’s one of a few who are attempting to get ALL the epics for all 9 crafters, and finished off two more last night. I needed four more pieces, two of which she made for me, and two which I asked around for. The only disappointing portion of the whole ordeal was the lack of help from other crafters. I’d asked a few times if anyone could help me with the final two pieces I needed and gotten no reply at all. But as soon as I threw some coin into the deal (5p.. I know that’s a lot but what else was I going to do with the money) I instantly got tells. I know how these things work, and I knew adding some coin to the offer would get me results. Even though I was supplying all rares. One of the two who did the combine for me DID mail the coin back as I made his portion as well- and for that I thank him. The earring is very nice, the cloak is just stunning on any halfling alive though, I’ve got to admit. Now I just need to find an outfit that will match the purple from the cloak. I like the unique look of these cloaks, and along with the scroll case above, this was one happy halfling. You also get a title “Master Jeweler” for example, was mine. You get 1 of each T8 rare- though honestly I’d rather have been reimbursed for the T5 rares I used since their prices have shot up so much. I’d love to do this quest on my other crafters, but because they’re all split between servers right now I doubt it’ll happen any time in the near future.

Aside from the crafting epic, I managed to finish the new Bristlebane Day quests, which was indeed bugged on the Freeport side. The quest starts outside the major cities, a distraught halfling will be screaming about the gods coming after them, in Commonlands by the West Freeport Gate (down the path a bit) in Antonica outside the South Freeport Gate (by a tent, you’ll see the flashing quest light) also in Gorowyn and Darklight Woods. The quest is cute and amusing- more so if you can get the quest to actually work. It worked fine on the Qeynos version for me, but I could not get the gnoll to spawn that I needed in the Commonlands. At the end Bristlebane himself (or a representation there of) comes and tells you it was all a joke, and hands you some house items.

Mmm house items. The pot is amusing, especially if you turn it on. Very bright. On the same note, have you taken a look at your fire place flames lately? The new “foolish” option is interesting to say the least. Must be some crazy gnome invention of fire proof paper.

I managed to ding the carpenter to 35, though I’m running out of vitality fast. I do have all sorts of experience potions which I may take advantage of. I just want to get out of this tier and into the next one. I also want to get some adventuring in since it’s been so long. That will more then likely have to wait until another day though, we’ll see how it goes. A few friends keep talking to me about pre-ordering WAR, but I honestly am not sure that I have any interest in playing. Meh. I’ve hit another one of those “restless” stages. Not sure what I want to play or do, or what direction I’m really headed in any more. Happens, though.

Tipa may have said she was writing at Massively now, but I know the truth… (She’s the short one, in case you’re not sure, or are blinded by the bright colours) As a heads up, the Bristlebane quests don’t seem to be given by these friendly folks here. I’m off to check Enchanted lands, and see if they have any news there. I’ve seen the items linked in chat now, and of course, being house items, I MUST have them.

*note* I’ve been told to look outside the cities for the quests- so off to Commonlands I go!

Outside the cities, will be one sad little halfling spouting off crazy talk about the gods, and needing protection from them. I haven’t completed the quest yet (freeport version may be bugged?) but so far it’s… interesting.

Something to keep in mind as you play in any realm, is that we ALL started as new players at one point or another, and if you’ve played one or more mmo’s in the past, you have an advantage over other players who maybe are delving into it for the first time. When I hear the questions some people ask on channels, I often wonder ‘how the heck can they NOT know that!’ - and then I catch myself, and remember how long it took me to get to level 10 when EQ2 released. It took three days.

There’s a few things every new player typically does. Look at their UI, see if there’s a way to arrange it to the way they like it, and I, personally, look for the key bindings, right away. I switch everything over to ‘the eq2′ format. I use tilde for auto attack, and remove it from my hot bar. I look for the screen shot button (you’d think it’s always print screen, but no, in Vanguard it’s F11) and I look for the basics. The inventory window, how to open bags, binding all my bags to one key, looking for lights if any are used, and any other weird keys I may not be used to.

I have very little patience with people, and explaining to someone where these ‘newb’ features are, frustrates me. I take a deep breath and remind myself that not everyone has been playing since release. That to some this is their first mmo (whatever game it may be, there are newbs wandering around everywhere) and that maybe if I could develop a little patience, and explain things a little nicer (WTF how did you get to level 80 and NOT know that you have to turn counter clockwise 12 times and click your heels in order to gate home?!) they may stick around, and in turn help someone else out. Setting an example to a fellow gamer is a huge deal, and sets the pace for the over all feeling of the game.

So when you’re wandering around, and you stumble into that person decked out in ‘green’ gear of shoddy quality. Remember. You were there once too. Even if it wasn’t for long.

The bad thing about down time in any mmo (for me at least) is that I typically switch off to another mmo while it’s happening. That of course starts a snowball effect, and before you know it I’ve switched games (again). Which is what I can already see happening here. I’ve been playing Vanguard steady for two months, I hadn’t even logged into EQ2 since the day the crafting epics went live. I’ve always said EQ2 is “home” though. So when I logged in yesterday it was no surprise.

I managed to catch Tipa online, and remembered how much I miss being able to join the bloggers channel (/join antonia_bayle.bloggers in case you forget what the channel name is!) as we chattered away about random topics. Guild mates were talking about American Idol which of course brings me back to the whole stalking Tipa incident. How I’ve missed it!

So I decided to get back into the swing of things on EQ2. Full time? Who knows. Don’t get me wrong here, I love Vanguard, I really do. EQ2 is always home though. I have tried to play more then one game at a time and I typically fail utterly at it, so we’ll see how it goes. I decided to work on my carpenter a little bit. I left her at level 30 (level 77 coercer) and the housing thing has always been a big pull for me. Besides, there were all these new pretties that I haven’t seen yet in game. I’m eager to get some levels and see what I can make. The faction portion won’t be an issue to me, because the coercer is also an adventurer. I can see how some low level crafters may have a complaint (or two) about all the writs they have to grind out.

However. After playing Vanguard, grinding out writs for faction is nothing, verses grinding out work orders in order to get rare sigils (and faction) to buy recipes. This is a cake walk.

I think an interesting concept would be to have coin gain interest if you put it in your bank over time. Maybe just a small tiny amount, but any amount. Currently there’s no reason for me to put coin in the bank at all (and WHY do we not have a shared coin slot??) aside from maybe trying to convince myself not to spend it (out of sight, out of mind philosophy). Even if the amount of interest you gained back, was based by over all sales on the broker or something. Interesting concepts I think. I understand they’re not that simple to implement, but I think it would be fun.

I’m a pack rat. It was great to look at all the stuff I’ve stored over time, and try to organize it all. I have over 200p now and really nothing to spend it on. I cut down some alts, and since I’ve only got one account instead of two (sighs, second one is just sitting there unused now, if you have a suggestion for me for it let me know!) I feel much more relaxed. I have a baby monk and swashbuckler to play, as well as my higher level coercer and templar. All four characters will craft (eventually) but for now things are quiet as I get back into the game. It’s not as though I’ve forgotten to play, I haven’t been gone THAT long after all, but there’s always things for me to pick up on again (what does VOE stand for again…) and friends of course to chatter to along the way.

So look for me on the bloggers channel, and say hello. Chances are I’ll be peeking into EQ2 again a little more frequently then Vanguard. NOT that I am giving either game up at the moment, but it’s always nice to be back.

One of the more over looked items that was added in GU43, was G15 keyboard support. Something I was ecstatic to hear.

Logitech G15 Support

EQII now supports the Logitech G15 Keyboard’s LCD display. You can enable/disable this option under Options->User Interface->Game Features. The data sent to the LCD window is extremely customizable.

The Default UI ships with five pages of data.
Page 1 is the title page and shows what each of the 4 buttons do when pressed.
Page 2 displays your current ping, packet loss, frame rate and bandwidth usage.
Page 3 displays experience for your adventure level, tradeskill level and achievement points.
Page 4 is a mini persona window showing your stats, health and power.
Page 5 displays the health and power for all members of your group.

UI modders can display any number of pages with each page showing any of the dynamic data already available to the client.

I’ve had my G15 for a little over a year now, and I love it. I don’t think I could switch to any other keyboard. I like being able to have my own profiles per game (granted, EQ2 is very limited with what I can do with those 18 keys, since they don’t allow keybinding past the 3 hotbars they give you to start with) and it’s something that should have been implemented long ago. I know a lot of people use gaming keyboards, and perhaps it just wasn’t known at the time how much this little feature would be appreciated.

Boston Cream cake, it may not look like the fanciest cake out there, but it was delicious.

So, last night I asked to be demoted from officer in my guild. Nothing overly big, but I’m just feeling overwhelmed with the responsibilities. We’ve had approx. 25 new recruits in the last three weeks, and I’ve tagged at least 90% of those people. I feel as though as an officer it’s my job to not only make sure new players feel welcome, but that they’re settled in the guild and game in general. I craft constantly for guild members (for no charge) and it’s slightly frustrating when the first thing a new recruit asks (who I’ve never even heard of before mind you) is for me to make them 300 bricks right off the bat. I admit now, I have a hard time saying no. I understand that no one’s forced me to take on the role to the extent that I have, but I feel as though it’s sort of my duty, if that makes sense.

I do like helping people, I’m not all mean. I do enjoy crafting house items for my fellow guild mates (ones I’ve known for a bit) and helping when I can. However, doing it daily from 6am-10pm is becoming more like a job then a fun game. That’s my reason for stepping down. I don’t mean to belittle the other officers or guild leader, but due to my constant play times, it’s just too much. Hopefully they understand.

Vanguard went down this morning for it’s weekly update, typically it’s Tuesday but last week and this week have been Wednesdays. I’m hoping they fix a few major bugs that are floating around. Since the server came down (well, it actually crashed, an hour before it was supposed to come down) I decided to take a peek into EQ2. I think I scared Calreth half to death when I suddenly showed up in guild. I left over two months ago (not intentionally, I was just going to ‘peek’ into Vanguard and then got swept up in the game) and have missed a few updates. There’s all sorts of crafting recipes now, and a whole lot of house items that I’ve never seen. I think I spend the better part of my EQ2 posts talking about housing and house items, and yet my own carpenter is only level 30. The itch to work on her and level is pretty strong right now. She’s also my 77 coercer, not that far away from 80, though I have no inclination to begin raiding or anything of the sort. The problem is that my characters are (at the moment) split between servers, which is a pain. I had even contemplated deleting some from one server, and starting them anew on the other. That’d be a lot (three years?) of work down the drain though. In the back of my mind I keep hoping SOE offers another free transfer option, or creates some sort of “move all your characters from this account” plan. Rather then the $50 each that I’d have to pay right now.

I noticed that fire place flames are now persistent even when no one has been home. Veteran rewards have been awarded by character and not 3 per like it used to be. There are froglok mannequins that I just laughed out loud about. My jeweler is still missing four pieces to her epic, but I’m not sure how easy that is to complete, no one seemed to be talking on the craft channels when I was on. Then again it was pretty early in the day and I wasn’t exactly looking to see who could help me out.

I’ve always been bad at playing more then one game. I like to dedicate myself to one or another fully. I do have station access though, and it seems a shame to be spending $30 a month playing just one of the listed titles. I’ve mentioned time and time again that I leave EQ2 and typically always come back, maybe it’s that time again.

Telon is huge.

That’s the ever lasting thought in my mind this morning as I play. Last night Growlius and I were doing quests in Cragwind. There happens to be a nice weapon one (which is also the hardest quest I have ever encountered thus far) that was broken. So in went a petition, 5 minutes later along came a GM who updated the quest for us (the first part, don’t get me wrong here they didn’t DO the quest for me). Then they turned both of us into zombie, and went on their way. How.. cute.

The quest requires us to farm 500 metal shards that have a 40% chance or so to drop from Cyclops in Cragwind. The problem is that these mobs are also mixed in with other rock guys who don’t drop the shards. We were up to 30 or so last night after a few hours. Wow, this weapon better be worth it (I already know it’s not, Greystone is better and it’s not that far away level wise).

This morning I hopped onto my psionicist who was restored a few days ago, now that she’s working properly. Did some adventuring around Tsangs Tomb, which I haven’t done in a year. I’ve got to say I still absolutely love the Kojan continent. Once I hit level 16, I was astounded by all of my leveling options. I just never realized how huge Telon is. With the revamp of the riftway system came along rift quests. The rewards are pies that last for an hour, and give you a 10% boost in experience. I have 15+ of these on me now (wish they stacked). They basically send you to areas that are your level range, so that you can figure out where to quest next. Not sure where to go? Stop by a rift, chances are he has a few suggestions.

At level 16, the ones offered to me just off the top of my head (because I’d never heard of most) were Sundering Wastelands, Qa Riverbank, Temple of Dailuk, Three Rivers, Kaon’s Rush, Renton Keep, Veksal’s Exchange, Ksaravi Gulch, and Tauthien Delta. These are just lowbie chunks. I can hardly begin to imagin how large Telon must really be if they offer all these types of areas for every few levels. It’s great. There’s no way leveling up I’d be able to see all of it on one character without either out leveling the content, or turning off my experience, or belonging to an inactive brotherhood. It’s just great to see.

Crafting, well. I’ve been busy with guild orders. Good and bad. I don’t mind crafting for the guild, however, some times I feel as though new members take advantage of the fact that there are high level crafters in their guild. I most certainly do not charge guild mates (aside the cost of materials if they don’t supply them) and making 300 bricks for someone who JUST joined can at times grate on my nerves. Those older members who do craft typically toss a little coin my way, or some supplies in return, which I appreciate and admire. They understand the pain that is ‘vanguard crafting’ (as much as I adore it, it IS still a pain). Recruitment has been steady, we’ve added 3-6 new people every week for the past two months or so. At least there’s sign of growth.

It was only a matter of time, really. Something I’ve noticed more and more as the days count down to other mmo’s being released. Everyone talks about “the good old days” of EQ1. It’s what a lot of gamers base their experiences off of, and how can they not after the length of time and dedication people put into it. I remember camping for three days straight for some mask my rogue wanted, badly. After I got it I was ecstatic. Pretty sure I still have it, too. I remember the community back then, and the friends I met. I look at everyone else reminiscing and I can say “yeah, I remember”.

So what do I attribute the change in gaming to (and yes, I feel as though there is a significant change in things, such as community)? Easy. It feels like everyone now treats mmo’s like the newest consol game. Where you pick it up, test it out for a little while, play it and get as high as you can as fast as you can, and then drop it for another game when it arrives on the shelves. There used to be a stage where you could not “beat” an mmo. Where you always seemed one step away from ‘finishing’ it. I think people feel differently now. You can ‘finish’ the games.

How many people these days talk about ‘when AOC comes out’ or ‘when WAR is released’ or any other mmo that’s going to be on the market in the next little while (those are just the two major ones that come to mind). My group of friends have already split in so many directions as more and more games come out, and people wander off. EQ1 is not the only option any more, not by a long shot. There are people in SWG, EQ, EQ2, WoW, LoTR, EVE, and beta testing for AOC and WAR that I can name right off the top of my head. We’re pulled in so many directions when it comes to gaming choices. How many people these days are only playing ONE mmo exclusively? Only paying one subscription? Sure, there may be a game you only play ’some times’ or when you’re bored of your ‘main mmo’. But gaming has very much evolved into a form of consol (NOT in the literal sense of the word remember here) where it’s not unheard of for a large number of people to pick up and move on when another comes out.

Is this a bad thing? Well, no. Options for gamers is always a good thing, however, it does make me sad.

With each ‘diversion’ of friends, with each little splitting of a community, you loose a little friendship. A little piece of what we all had back in EQ1. It’s so easy to let go and forget about that guild you hung out with way back when. Sure, you’ll remember them, events you had and the like. It’s not quite the same though. You also meet new people, a good point. The community has still changed those as I’ve grown older. Could it just be age? I suppose so. I hate to appear jagged over events as I am personally only nearing my 6th year if mmos in general, though I played MUDS for three years before that. My dad used to run a BBS and we had a game called ‘hack ‘n slash’ that was a lot of fun. Then I moved on to ‘redemption’, a mud I played for a long time (and also met my fiancee there). From there we both started playing EQ1, then EQ2, WoW, VG. Now there’s talk of WAR and AOC, when those come out.

I could stay playing where I am. The community around me, however, more then likely will not. I don’t think I actually know anyone who will NOT be playing a different mmo in a years time. I guess I just miss the sense of community that I used to know. NOT that the community now is bad, not in any way. No, I’m just saying it’s different, and some times, I miss the way things used to be.

What a surprise Friday night when I get a tell in Vanguard from none other then Cordanim himself! I’ve known him for a few years now (three I think..) so of course it was wonderful to hear from him in game. After figuring out what he wanted to play, I suggested (he’ll call it harassed) he join Safe Haven, and last night I tossed him an invite to the guild before he headed off to decorate Easter eggs with his little ones.

I was actually busy with other things yesterday and didn’t get to spend much time in game, instead enjoying some wonderful crab curry and chocolate cake. The malls were busy since Friday was a holiday, Sunday is a Holiday, and in some places, so is Monday. I watched some more of Inukami (wonderful anime sent to me by Growlius) and pondered what to do in game that wouldn’t take up too much time. Faydai is sitting a little into her level, and I’ll probably manage to get one today.

I decided to set up a brotherhood between a few of my own characters. This requires a third party to do the inviting (as you have to be online to invite) but it also insures a few things. Number one, what a brotherhood does is split all adventure experience (this includes quest experience) between anyone in the brotherhood. It’s a way to insure you don’t out level your friends (or content for that matter) if you like to play a little extra. By putting two of my own characters in it (my bard and my psionicist) they will both essentially level at the same time. Yes, it will be twice as slow, but they’ll both get the experience. Which means if I played my bard to 50, the psionicist would also be level 50 via the brotherhood. This is a good way to stretch the content a little more as well, and not out level everything. I find that I missed a lot of dungeons, and quest areas. In a brotherhood I have twice as long to enjoy everything. At later levels I may consider adding a third character of mine to it (there is a level range involved) and level up three characters that way. A few people consider it ‘cheating’ but I think it’s a way to optimize my characters and playing habbits. Besides, it’s a unique feature that Vanguard specifically offers people to partake in.

So I’ve been playing my bard (who is a lot of fun) decided I don’t quite enjoy the warrior (but I won’t delete her due to her craft levels and a few other things) I’ve got a little necromancer who will probably just sit there for a bit doing nothing, and of course my main. Vanguard is still not without its bugs, and I don’t pretend other wise, but I’m having a lot of fun none the less. Community, is key, as always.

I’ll be hosting a guild event at the end of this month and I’m excited about that. A scavenger hunt of sorts for people of all levels. Monday I’m also going to be starting my forum contests for small prizes for guild mates, to try and motivate them to get into the habit of reading the forums at least on a weekly basis. We post all of our events up there, and it’s important to check them out. It also adds to the ‘family’ feel of the guild. How can you get to know anyone after all without getting involved.

Happy Easter to everyone out there, and safe travels no matter what realm you find yourself playing in today!