Yearly Archives: 2012

Face of Mankind Dev Diary: Dramatic Changes Coming

Face of Manking Dev Diary: Dramatic Changes in the Pipeline

By Dev Oblivious, Nexeon Representative

 

 

Face of Mankind is excited to announce several major new features, bringing its unique open world gameplay to the next level! Already a one of a kind experience with its player run factions including law enforcement, guns for hire and mega-corporations, political conflict, and civil unrest this slew of new content means you won’t have a chance to breath as you fight through the world of the Dominion, whether it be the battle of a politician, diplomat or a soldier.

 

Wars, Expedited

The breakneck speed of Face Of Mankind’s real time, third person shooter combat system is now matched by the new world takeover system. Be on your guard, lest your enemies wrest your colony from under your control – or even better, get to them first.

 

Cash In On Your Dissent

Activism and crime have never been so effective. Be a member of the Guardians, and help your faction force a colony’s owner to lower their taxes. Or resort to a life of crime and help your fellow Brotherhood member’s traffic illicit goods. Do it right, and even remove all semblance of law.

 

 

Be An Entrepreneur

The Public Apartment feature allows you to open up to the world at large. Charge an entry fee, only allow your friends, or host an underground dueling club – the possibilities are entirely up to you.

 

 

 

Time To Play Dress Up

No more restrictions – get in gear with all factions armor and clothing, despite whichever one you’re in. New armor attributes ensure that you’ll be trying out all kinds of gear to find what suits you best.

 

 

Be sure to check out the full developer’s blog for an in-depth explanation of the upcoming features in patch 1.5.9.2 – http://forums.faceofmankind.com/entry.php?12-Developer-s-Blog-5-29-2012

 

 

With a steady stream of new features and an experience that is truly one of a kind, now is the best time there is to check out Face of Mankind. Look us up, and we’ll see you in the worlds of the Dominion! http://www.faceofmankind.com/

WeMade Announces Ambitious MMORPG for iOS and Android

WeMade Announces Ambitious MMORPG for iOS and Android

 

 

WeMade Entertainment (WeMade), a leading publisher and developer of mobile/online games, today announced their crown jewel and the most ambitious iOS title yet. This aspiring game, “The Project”, is an MMORPG for the mobile platform (iOS & Android systems) and will be available to play at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) at the Los Angeles Convention Center, June 5-7, 2012.

 

 

“The Project” is the prodigy of seasoned MMORPG developers; many of whom worked on WeMade’s massively popular series, Legend of Mir.  With a grand scale equal to any client-based MMORPG, “The Project” is ready to prove that you don’t need a PC to experience the full grandeur of an online game.

 

 

What’s an MMORPG without the ‘massive’ and ‘multiplayer’ characteristics? Unlike the so-called competitors, “The Project” enables numerous players to game together via the mobile network. The technology utilized to allow this true multiplayer function is what allows WeMade to take mobile MMORPG’s to the next level.

 

 

Furthermore, “The Project” combines all the benefits of a player-friendly mobile game including convenience, multiple platforms (iOS & Android), and direct interactions with the game through touch based commands.  Its high graphical quality and fluid animation puts it a cut above other mobile MMOs which are usually made in 2D with only a few attempts at 3D. Also, it boldly challenges the limits of a mobile device by allowing the servers to give an immediate response and action.

 

 

OnRPG will be meeting with WeMade next Tuesday afternoon at E3 to discover more information. Be sure to follow OnRPG all next week as we cover major titles like RaiderZ, Elder Scrolls Online, Age of Wushu, Core Blaze, and more!

TERA: For the Federation 5 – The Shadow of Giants

TERA: For the Federation 5 – The Shadow of Giants

By Darren Henderson (DizzyPW), OnRPG Editor-in-Chief

 

 

 

A week had passed since our induction into Samael’s personal guard, and that’s exactly how long it took Platy and I to learn how brutal being in his personal division can really be. Our first assignment was nothing short of cornering and killing the suspected leader of the Scions of Lok, one Platy and I were more than willing to go along for after our ordeal on the Island of Dawn. It’s funny that I always thought I would only see the great deserts of Val Aureum and the remnants of the Giants’ Empire in books. Now I stood behind our superior office as he read off an agreement of passage before two giants standing twenty feet tall in the hopes of peacefully proceeding to the Halls of Shadow where the cultists had entrenched themselves. Platy standing on my shoulders would not even be as wide or tall as the club the giant chieftain before us precariously balanced on his stone chiseled shoulder guards.

 

 

Still these giants looked barbaric and sullen compared to the images I had seen of the great Giants’ Empire of old. Giants plated in gold and Xer metal riding upon mammoths with legions of enslaved Amani at their command. Their empire stretched from modern day Kaiator across the great sea to southern Val Aureum and everything in between. And now less than one millennium later the giants bear no greater importance on world events than that of the Naga or Tuwangi. Their great palaces mere ruins. The Amani rulers of their own domain and unafraid to kill a giant that dares look down on them.

 

 

Sure pound for pound a giant can take most any Federation soldier. But with the races united now they are outnumbered 100 to 1. I could see the bitter withheld rage in their eyes as Samael’s right hand man er Castanic, Stadrian, continued reading off the scroll without flinching at the two giants’ unpredictable movement. His veins were surely made out of ice to read off Samael’s degrading words to the giant chieftain. Though cockiness goes hand to hand with being a Castanic, Stadrian seemed to take it to an entirely new level. His hardened leather and Normetal forged gear shone duly in the hot desert sun as he cocked his head to the side awaiting a response from the giants. As we had planned the giants turned and began to wave down their followers. I breathed the first breath in a minute as I saw the giants lower their clubs in acceptance of the temporary treaty.

 

 

Just as I let me guard down, the chieftain turned and swung his monstrous club down on our helpless platoon. The ground shook as the soldier standing between Platy and I forever disappeared into the blooded sands of Val Aureum. Seconds felt like minutes as we moved in slow motion attempting to take cover. The tribe of 30 giants had rallied at the sudden aggression of their leader and cheered his name in hopes of further destruction. As I crawled through the sand looking for cover, I turned to see Stadrian smirk and stand his ground before the enormous being. He uncaringly rolled up his scroll, tossing it into the sands, and lifted his shield with one arm over his head just in time to receive the full blunt of the chieftain’s club. A cheer roared out from the giant tribe as his feet sunk into the sand, but to our surprise he stood fast and retaliated with such force that the giant’s club flew back into his own face, knocking him off balance. With one sweeping motion his lance extended to slice across the giant’s right kneecap straight to his left ankle. The chieftain fell to his knees before the Castanic lancer.

 

 

“You mistake me for a simple Federation fool, giant. I serve a higher god than you could ever comprehend.”

 

 

As if performing an interpretive dance, he never finished his motion and swung the lance over his head to face it straight on towards the giant chieftain’s face. The lance extended, skewering him through the forehead and killing the massive creature instantly.

 

 

Without waiting Stadrian strode forward, a dark aura consuming him. Before the chieftain’s adviser could raise his weapon the lance shot through his sternum, knocking him off his feet and fatally wounding the hapless beast.

 

 

“Your tribe has crossed Lord Samael, Grand Commander of Velika. Run now or face the traitorous death you deserve!”

 

 

The giants gazed at each other seeking a new brazen fool to rise up as leader. When none stood the giants furthest from Stadrian rose and scrambled towards the hills. The ground shook as the remaining twenty-eight giants tripped over themselves trying to clear distance from the presence of Stadrian, leaving their weapons in the sand to maximize their retreat speed. Stadrian turned and strode towards the smashed remains of the fallen soldier.

 

 

“Weakness is repaid only with death in Samael’s guard. Let this be a lesson to all of you. If any of you show cowardice before the Scion Leader tonight, I will personally slay you where you stand.”

 

 

Stadrian pushed into me as he strode through the remains of the Giant encampment towards the Halls of Shadow.

 

 

“Three hours men. Rest well because tonight your worth as men will be shown.”

 

 

Three hours flashed by in the blink of an eye. Most of the men rested. I dared not blink. Platy stared straight back at me from his adjacent cot. The memory of our smashed comrade had shaken something deep inside of me. This was the first time I had seen a man die I realized. Just as it started to sink in, Justicar Jesper rapped on our wall and demanded Platy and I rise to attention.

 

 

“Listen closely, Dizzy. Above all else, at any cost, you are to kill the Black Hood suspected of leading the Cultist of Lok uprising. We have reason to believe he is an insider. A high ranking officer of the Valkyon Federation. Kill him regardless with no questions asked. They’re a threat to the foundation of the Federation. If Samael wasn’t watching out for us, they’d probably have half our enemies encamped outside Velika’s gates.”

 

 

“We’ve killed their men and forced them into the deepest depths of the Halls of Shadow. There are three routes the Black Hood may escape. Do your duty soldier. Take these five and cover the eastern tunnel. Kill anyone you find!”

 

 

As we marched into the eastern tunnel I prayed we would be the lucky squad. No I don’t mean the ones who would slay the Cultist leader and return glorious to Velika. I wondered if we even stood a chance. In my mind I prayed we would find nothing and report back to base camp to learn that the Black Hood was dead, killed by Stadrian’s spear while covering the western tunnel. As we searched room after room of their makeshift subterranean camp I was relieved to see no signs of life.

 

 

“Just one hall left Platy and we can report back” I whispered nervously. Platy said nothing but nodded in agreement.

 

 

I marched into the final marked room on my map with glee that it had been an uneventful mission, yet my heart stopped as I gazed at a massive and powerful looking Elf in a black hood rushing a small group into an opening in the wall. He turned to face me and my fear suddenly turned into hatred.

 

 

It was an unnatural feeling. As if I was looking down upon myself from a third person perspective. Darkness clouded my eyes as it became difficult to distinguish one member from another in my five man team. They all looked back at me with similar sinister faces, waiting for orders. I tried my best to formulate a plan but when I opened my mouth, someone else’s words erupted from the depths of my belly.

 

 

“Kill…Kill..Kill..Kill!” I lifted my spear and, as if one body, my followers prepared for battle as well.

 

 

“Who.. who are you?” The surprised Elf responded.

 

 

My burning desire for bloodshed had yearned long enough. I charged forward at the Elf in hopes of slaying him before he could raise his famed twin blades. Just as our clash seemed imminent a flash of red shot in front of me. It was Jelena! My passion subsided as she stood with a bemused look on her face as her eyes locked with the hooded figure. I attempted my approach again but a swift back kick met my round bunny nose and knocking me away.

 

 

She turned and approached with swords drawn. The possibility that Jelena had been a part of the conspiracy all along made perfect sense. She was keeping close to Leander the same way Fadora had stayed by my side to take me out should I discover damning evidence against the Cult. I raised my shield with one hand and my open right paw with the other to motion my followers to attack. Before I could make a move Jelena flipped between my shield and body and pressed her sword hard into my chest.

 

 

I fell forward expecting blood to spill from my mouth, but instead found shards of emerald and glass floating through the air before my eyes. My senses returned and the need for bloodshed began to fade. Jelena turned and nodded to the hooded figure and he nodded back his understanding. In one fell swoop the hooded figure shot through the room, dodging blades and balls of fire as he broke the Mark of Samael from each of my soldiers’ necks. One by one my soldiers stumbled to the ground and recovered their senses. All but Platy seemed genuinely disoriented and unsure why they were even inside the cave. At last the hooded figure removed his cloak and glared back at me. Jelena chucked as the realization of his identity dawned on me.

 

 

“You… Elleon? Here?! Elleon is the Black Hood? No that makes no sense!” My thoughts dribbled from my mouth without filter.

 

 

Jelena shushed me, her mood far more light hearted then I had ever witnessed before. “Of course Elleon isn’t the leader of the Cult. Samael is pulling the strings and trying to use the fear his organization is spreading to trick good soldiers into killing anyone that stands in his way.”

 

 

I looked to Elleon and he approached me with something in his hand. He held out his hand and dropped a small trinket into my open paw. I looked down to see a thin bracelet with the cartoon faces of two chubby bunnies and a fox girl between them.

 

 

“Surmun speaks highly of his disciple, Dizzy of Pora Elinu. Wulynn also assured me you wouldn’t sit idly by until she was safe. I trust we have much to discuss but first we need to get out of here.”

 

 

My mouth fell open. Not only had I discovered that the Federation’s greatest hero was alive, but that he had information on both of my family as well! I looked back to Platy as he let out his goofy high pitched laugh and we quickly scurried into the hidden tunnel along with our 3 bewildered colleagues. Elleon assured us they were as good as dead if we left them there so it was necessary baggage.

 

 

As I emerged atop the great mine and looked out over Val Aureum waiting for our evac pegasus ride I felt the world had become a little brighter. I tied Wulynn’s bracelet around my shield grip and grinned in satisfaction. I couldn’t believe that a little bookworm like me could have set out on a dangerous rescue mission and become part of a group fighting to save the future of Velika. With Elleon at my back I boarded my pegasus with renewed confidence. Hold on Surmun… Wulynn.. help is on the way!

 

Starcraft II Red Bull Battlegrounds Recap

Starcraft II Red Bull Battlegrounds Recap

 

 

With fans driving hours, crossing state lines and  international borders, Austin, Texas became an eSports epicenter Memorial Day weekend, at the first ever Red Bull Battlegrounds invitational pro-video game tournament.  Attendees on site and in cyberspace were rewarded with an unprecedented live eSports experience across two days of action-packed competition in “the live music capitol” of the world. The 5,000 on-site spectators were treated to the intimate, premiere setting of Texas’ renowned live entertainment venue, Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater which was transformed into a high-tech spectator arena for this world-class event. 16 of the best StarCraft® II players from around the world competed for $41,000 in cash prizes, turning Austin into the “live gaming capitol” this weekend.

 

 

The Red Bull Battlegrounds tournament weekend kicked off with a free-to-the-public open house, inviting fans to meet and mingle with not only the players, but also top-level event commenters, Sean “Day[9] Plott, Marcus “djWHEAT” Graham, Mike “Husky” Lamond, and Rob Simpson from Blizzard Entertainment, the game developer of StarCraft II. After a lively panel discussion and Q&A session with the audience hosted by the commentators, the open house turned celebratory, with fans lining up for autographs and photo opportunities with the top competitors and pundits in eSports.

 

 

Following a crowd-pumping opening ceremony, day one of tournament action commenced with group stage play, throwing each competitor into a demanding run of best of three series. Their clashes were peppered with cheers and standing ovations from the audience, and expert analysis and color from the illustrious commentators. Day one saw intense matches across the board, with lead commentator Sean “Day[9]” Plott remarking that each of these opening battles was truly epic. Asked what his favorite match of the day was, Mike “Husky” Lamond called out the marathon match between Ji Sung “Bomber” Choi and Chris “Ostojiy” Ostojic, with Red Bull athlete Bomber advancing to the second day’s quarterfinals.

 

 

Heading into day two, the quarterfinals kicked off with player confidence running high, and no shortage of talent and clever tactics – or smack talk. After decisive series of best of three matches that saw the elimination of Dong Hwan “viOLet” Kim, Lee Sak “PartinG” Won, Kim “SaSe” Hammer and Young Suh “TaeJa” Yoon, semi-finalists Illyes “Stephano” Satouri, Min Chul “MC” Jang, Hyun Woo “Squirtle” Park and Bomber moved forward, with the pressure increasing as the champion’s round and ultimate prize became that much closer. Despite his signature bravado, Stephano was defeated by MC in the semi-finals after a series of back-and-forth matches, but went on to take the third place prize and $5,500 after a clash with South Korean powerhouse, Startale’s Squirtle.

 

 

The last men standing for the finals were Bomber and MC, playing a best of seven championship round. In a pre-match interview, both competitors voiced the importance of this win: SK.MC declared his hope for a first tournament win in the United States, while Bomber, calm and cool, told interviewer Rob Simpson he wasn’t worried about his chances in the finals, leaving fans with his final words – “are you ready for Bombing?”

 

 

After a series of six hard fought battles Protoss player MC emerged as the first ever champion of the Red Bull Battlegrounds, taking home $15,000, with second place Bomber leaving with $8,000 in his pocket. With this astonishing win under his belt, his first in the US, MC told the audience it felt “fantastic” and it all came down to playing his best. His final comments to his fans were a simple ‘thank you’ before raising the champion’s trophy skyward.

 

 

Be sure to check out the recap video here as well as check back at OnRPG later this week when JamesBl0nde and Brad Baker bring us recap coverage and interviews with some major players at the event.

MU Online: eX 700 Expansion Update

MU Online: eX 700 Expansion Update

 

MU Online

 

Webzen announced the expansion update, ‘EX 700’, for the MMORPG ‘MU Online’. On May 31st, Webzen will reveal the MU Online expansion update, ‘EX’ 700’, which contains new contents including new maps, items and the guild war system. A teaser trailer has been released showing off some of these features in action. Last week during the User Beta Test, participants had given many positive responses increasing the anticipation for other users.

 

 

In the new expansion, the 200 Master levels are increased to 300. Therefore, the existing master skills will be initialized with this renewal. Also, the new map ‘Archeron’, will be revealed for the first time along with the guild war system, ‘Arca War’. Additionally, the Elemental System with the five elements, ‘Water, Fire, Wind, Earth and Darkness’, will be added. When elemental items are equipped, opposite elements will be affected in both PVP and PVE.

 

 

With the update, a new server, ‘Yggdrasil’, will be open for service. In the new server, the global PVP tournament will be held with prizes worth $15,000 (USD) in cash items while registration for the tournament will start from June 7th through the official MU Online website.

 

 

Jihun Lee, Head of Global Publishing, said, “This expansion update is one of the largest updates throughout MU Online’s history with new contents that include the ‘Arca War’.” Also, he said, “One of our main points of this update is to fulfill the user’s need which is possible with the wide experience accumulated over a decade of servicing MU Online.”

 

 

Meanwhile, for the opening event of ‘EX700’, free cash items and unique items will be given away to new members along with a 200% EXP boost event for all users.

League of Legends: How to get Ahead in Noxus

League of Legends: How to get Ahead in Noxus

By Jason Harper (Hhean), OnRPG LoL Reporter

 

 

Welcome summoners, to the patch v1.0.0.140 article for League of Legends, the game that knows how to storm the Bastille. This patch includes some major graphical updates, a brand new mage item and Darius, The Hand of Noxus.

 

 

Darius is a murderous, up close and personal physical mage, in the same vein as Garen and Yorick. Once he’s in his enemy’s face, he’s going to stick on them while he hacks his victim to bits. Getting in on ranged characters can often be difficult though, so his abilities can be very binary. He’s either killing everything within his reach, or fruitlessly waving his axe at the enemy team. He can jungle well, but his top lane capabilities are truly brutal, especially against other melee bruisers.

 

 

Much like Sejuani or Brand, Darius is a character with a debuffing passive that binds his kit together. When he hits an enemy with an auto-attack or ability he will apply a single stack of Hemorrhage to them, causing them to take damage over time and increase his own movement speed based on the number of enemy champions affected. This movement speed, when combined with the slow from his Crippling Strike [E], can make him near inescapable.

 

 

His main strategy is to try and get these stack on his enemy as quickly as possible, then unleash all the benefits he gets from them in a murderous assault. His easiest and most damaging combination is to simply run at the enemy (preferably from a blind spot), auto-attack them, cut them with Decimate [Q], attack again and then deliver a Crippling Strike [W]. Both Decimate and Crippling Strike will cancel his auto attack animations, allowing for a very rapid chain if you time his abilities properly.

 

 

If the enemy tries to fight back, take comfort that if they’re trying to use auto-attacks at all, your Crippling Strike is going to be severely cutting into their damage output. With all those Hemorrhage stacks on them, its cooldown is going to be very low too, so they’ll have no chance to fight you on equal terms. If they do the smart thing and try to run, reel them back towards you with his Apprehend [E], and keep slicing off chunks of their health.

 

 

A quick fun fact about Apprehend. It will work on any target, not just champions. This means you can drag jungle creeps through walls to steal them from your enemies in safe positions. The best use of this trick is to drag the Elder Golem through the thin wall around his camp, and kill him from the brush right beside the middle lane. If you get caught, you’re in a far safer position than if you were found right in the middle of the Golem’s little nook.

 

 

Once you get five Hemorrhage stacks on your opponent, cut them down with his ultimate, Noxian Guillotine [R]. While the tooltip for the ability says it will full reset if you kill someone with this ability, it’s actually better than that. The exact way this ability has been made is if they die within 0.5 seconds of being hit by the ultimate, then it will reset. This sounds like a minor difference, but it actually allows you some leeway in its usage, especially if you use it just as your mage is letting rip with their burst.

 

 

The major temptation with his ultimate is to hold it back as an execution move all the time. However, since the only advantage of using it on someone with low health is that its cooldown resets, you can happily use it on anyone with five stacks on them, provided you don’t think reinforcements are on their way. Early fights on top are a good example of this, as the rest of the enemy are usually nowhere near, and it’s better to secure the kill than hold off and give the enemy the chance to flash away. Hell, even three or so stacks on an enemy will usually give you some good damage output early on. The major hurdle with using this ability is knowing when to just let rip with it, rather than holding it back for kills all the time.

 

 

Darius’ major flaw is his lack of a gap closer. Unless he’s burning Flash to get in on you, he’s not going to take anyone by surprise. A character that can kite well can handle Darius fairly easily. Nidalee and Kennen can be very hard matchups for him to deal with as a result. Having an Ashe, Alistar or Janna on your team can really ruin his day, as slows and knockbacks can stop him from ever getting in reach. Once he’s in range though, you’re in real trouble. Your only hope is that hopefully he’s been weakened enough while trying to get in reach that you can burst him down before he starts chunking off healthbars.

 

 

If you’re facing a jungle Darius, remember to keep your tri-brushes warded, as his main means of getting in range of his enemies is going to be to come in on them from behind. His invasion can be difficult to deal with, as he often will fight jungle camps in unusual locations. His lack of an escape makes his invasion risky though, so a single ward at a jungle entrance can alert your teammates to dogpile him when he’s in your territory.

 

 

Take a level in Decimate at level 1 and max it first. Take Crippling Strike at level 2 and max it second. Level Apprehend at level 3 or 4, depending on how murderous you’re feeling. Level it last. He’s very straightforward, really. Damaging stuff first, and utility last.

 

 

For items, start with boots and three health potions. If you just want to farm your jungle, or your jungling runes and masteries aren’t finished yet, go for cloth armour and health potions. Since his early game is strong, regardless of how he’s equipped, I like to use some gold per 10 items on him. This is to build into his late game strength, but also because Randuin’s Omen is a very good item to build from the Heart of Gold. It grants him both an activated slow, but also a slow on those who attack him as he approaches, allowing him to gain ground more easily. Other good items on him are Maw of Malmortius, Force of Nature, Phage (Possibly to build into Frozen mallet), Shurelya’s Reverie (Good gap closer to situationally build from Philo Stone, which can be a good item when jungling), and other lower priority defensive items. A surprisingly good item on him is a Last Whisper, which can stack its percentile armour penetration with his Apprehend’s passive. This can be especially potent as he often has little in the way of flat armour penetration to diminish the returns on his percentile penetration.

 

 

Once you’re tanky enough to survive anything the enemy can throw at you, build a Bloodthirster. In the late game, with three levels of Noxian Guillotine and five stacks of Hemorrhage, a Darius with Bloodthirster can hit for around a thousand true damage. If the enemy team isn’t stacking health, they’re not going to be able to stop Darius from mass executing their whole team.

 

 

Use the 9/21/0 page you most likely already have set aside for your bruisers and tanks. Attack damage marks, armour seals and magic resistance glyphs (Six flat, three per level) are his base rune loadout. When laning, I prefer using movement speed quintessences to help with his harass, but in the jungle I prefer attack damage quintessences for faster camp clearing.

 

 

Unless he gets nerfed into obscurity, expect to see a lot more of Darius from here on out. As I’ve already said, there’s no avoiding the fact that he is very strong right now. He hits like a truck, and has a good bit of utility in his kit. While he doesn’t have any abilities to help himself in one piece, he has very good base stats to compensate. His only weakness is how hard it can be for him to get in reach of his enemies, but given that melee opponents don’t have many options but to charge him, dealing with him can be very difficult. To top it off, he’s also got a very high fun factor, with excellent sounds and animations to really drive home the feeling of being this merciless executioner. His ultimate alone is satisfying as all get out. I screamed with joy when I landed it for the first time. The animation, the sound, the feel of the ability is just pitch perfect.

 

Riot has really upped the quality of skins and splash art lately.

 

The new item, Athene’s Unholy Grail, should be a boon to mana hungry characters like Anivia, Swain or Orianna. While I doubt the item is going to be a core build on many characters, on the few that often live or die by blue buff, this will be a good safety net against this invasion heavy metagame.

 

 

This patch has seen a sweeping visual upgrade to Summoner’s Rift. Farewell weird goblin shopkeeper guy, I’ll miss wondering what you were meant to be. I welcome our new Yordle overlord… erhmm.. merchant. Yes, that’s what I meant.

 

 

Merchant.

 

 

To discuss some of the changes yourselves, post in the massive League of Legends thread in the free to play MMOs section, or post in the comments section below. If you haven’t tried League of Legends yet, you’re missing out.

MEAD: The RIFT Wardrobe Debate

MEAD: The RIFT Wardrobe Debate

By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG Journalist

 

 

Earlier today I had a…lets call it a debate with some of my fellow level 50 channel folks about wardrobe slots. In particular was the desire to have a weapon wardrobe slot. After all, how many times have you been bummed out because you out leveled an awesome looking weapon for a really crappy plain one to replace it? Its happened to me more times than I can count. If you had seen the “debate” today you may have thought I was completely against the idea of a weapon wardrobe slot, but I will admit there is a small part of me that would love have it. But the negatives to having them are enough to make me speak out against having the feature.

So, before I get too into the specifics of the pros and cons I should really explain the issue. Wardrobe slots were introduced with 1.2 in May of 2011. They allow players to choose what armor they appear to be wearing while still getting the stats desired from the less appealing looking armor. This is really a wonderful thing because some of the best stats come from some really ugly armor. But now you can wear anything you want within reason. So what does Trion think is reasonable? Sticking to your own armor type. Plate armor no matter what level looks like plate armor, cloth always looks like cloth. Then there are costume pieces which anyone can wear no matter what class you are. But the wardrobe slot was by some accounts incomplete. There was no spot for weapons or shields or even wands.

 

 

The lack of a weapon wardrobe slot becomes especially obvious when you can purchase weapons like the shovel of progress from the artifact vendor. It has a few stats but is effectively useless in combat. But what warrior wouldn’t love beating planar creatures with a shovel? Or maybe you bought a broken bottle or pitchfork during the last event like I did. Again, they have such poor stats that they never get use. I got the complete collection and they just sit in my bank taking up space because in a fight I need to be able to hold my ground. Though I would pay to see a warfront where everyone is carrying broken bottles. In addition most of the world events have had weapons which you could buy but if you didn’t buy the higher level weapons you quickly outgrew our awesome looking weapons. Having a weapon wardrobe slot would give those things a new life.

Lets say Trion does give us the slot. How would it work? Should I be able to be a warrior but carry a staff around? Or maybe a book? Nevermind the animations issues that would cause (could you imagine trying to use Bull Rush while carrying a bow?) think of what that would do to pvp. It would invite baiting. You wouldn’t be able to tell what you were about to go up against until it was really too late. The argument was made in the 50 channel that you could just look at what they’re wearing. After all the wardrobe slot you still have to wear your own type of armor…or costumes. If its so obvious though then tell me, while I wear this full set of Sandcovered armor…what class am I? Am I a healer?

 

 

I look like….like I could be anyone! You could end up with it being all but a requirement in pvp that people wear costume pieces and carry a staff. The potentials for abuse there are huge.

Ok, so being able to equip any weapon isn’t really an option. So how about going the way of the regular wardrobe slots and allow you to only slot weapons usable by your class. Again, ignoring potential animation issues, consider what that would do. Each class has a variety of weapons to pick from. All of them defining what range you stand at and what souls you’re using. Again in pvp you wouldn’t know what you’re going up against. Should you expect to be blasted from afar by death energies or expect to get stabbed in the back with a dagger?

The final option would be to limit people to equipping only the type of weapon they’re carrying. And you know, I’m kind of ok with that. Until you remember those bottles and shovels from before which effectively act as costume pieces.

 

 

So, PvP and animations are the biggest issues with having weapon wardrobe slots. And I’ve thought of a great way to get around the problem. People won’t like it, especially people on pvp shards. Have wardrobes deactivate when you get flagged. That way you know exactly who and what you’re going up against. It will be an ugly fight though, and it will discourage people from pvping. Equally though bringing in the weapon slot will discourage the less hardcore pvpers like myself.

Customization in an MMO means a lot to me, and I’m not alone in that. Trion knows how important customization is and most importantly they’re listening. On the forums there are pages upon pages upon pages of people discussing and debating weapon wardrobe slots. During the first RP Town Hall back in December the cries for this feature were heard. And while generally it seems right now that Trion won’t be doing it they have been known to surprise us all and think of something we never would have thought of in a million years. For now though, the debate goes on.