Sprite - Welcome to another great Stratics house of commons with the developers of EverQuest! Tonight's topic is the upcoming expansion: Prophecy of Ro. So please keep your questions to this topic.
Sprite - The full logs will be posted on http://eq.stratics.com after the chat. We'll begin with a quick intro from our guests...now would be a good time to send in those questions!
Rashere - Good evening everyone. I'm Travis McGeathy, Lead Designer for EverQuest.
Maddoc - Welcome everyone, I'm Jason Mash, an Assistant Lead Designer on the EverQuest Team.
Vahlar - Good evening! I'm Holly Longdale, EQ Designer.
Raghnell - Hey everybody, I am Chris Lena, still Producer of EverQuest
Rytan - Hey everyone, I’m Ryan Barker assistant lead for the EverQuest design team. Generally responsible for spell and game system design and developement.
Ngreth - Hello! Adam Bell - Associate Designer in charge of Tradeskills
Vahlar - Oh ya. Some call me the Lore Lady...
Sprite - *Jenico* will this be the last expansion and how high do you forsee the level cap going up to? things...even things never tried in MMOs before. The level cap is always something we're looking as far as character advancement is concerned, so I can pretty safely say that we'll take players beyond level 70 at some point.
Sprite - *Kyden_ZEK* whats going on to prevent the use of MacroQuest2 on zek and other servers
Rytan - Although Zek is usually the place where much of the macroquest and other hacking issues are first seen, it’s not the only place those types of exploits are happening. We have several members of the coding staff that spent a great deal of their time foiling hacker programs that can come up on any of the servers.. I can’t speak to the specifics of our action plan, but I can tell you that we are committed to making EverQuest as hack free as w
Raghnell - Is Rytan ok?
Rytan - Speaking from my personal PvP experience, nothing makes me madder then player using a hacker program to gain the upperhand.
Rytan - sorry guess I got cut off there "I can’t speak to the specifics of our action plan, but I can tell you that we are committed to making EverQuest as hack free as we possibly can."
Sprite - *jisahl_fennin* will the new mount have the same speed as the boar mount, or will this one be faster
Rashere - For the Prophecy of Ro warhorse, I'm planning to allow you to turn in the claim item along with a normal bridle and receive a warhorse that moves at the speed of the horse summoned by that normal bridle. So, you can either use the base speed warhorse or get yourself a faster one through the turn in.
Sprite - *Croix_FV* Will progression through PoR be mainly instanced with some static content, like DoD, or mostly static content, like the PoP model?
Vahlar - The progression through this expansion is a pretty interesting blend. We've taken a different approach this time as there will be some competition in some access and progression quests mixed with instanced content so that at any given time guilds and players can advance in several different ways. You won't always need a raid to complete all parts of the progression. Groups will also find content that will allow them to progress and acce
Sprite - *Adraun_Xegony* regarding the abilty to destroy walls. How exactly is this going to enhance gameplay. What purpose is in mind for destroyable walls?
Rashere - These new destructible terrain features are really all about interaction with the environment and letting players get more involved with the world around them.
Rashere - For instance, in one of the news zones, you can take out entire enemy encampments, tearing down their walls, tents, and even destroying their siege weapons as you drive them off the battlefield. You'll also find yourself assaulting a great keep, fending off enemies while you work to destroy the doors to the keep and gain access to the inner courtyard.
Rytan - plus kicking in a door is just cool.
Sprite - *Nemorath* Will PoR contain any new PC races? Specifically are there any plans for new athropomorphic races like the Vah Shir?
Vahlar - We're always looking at options to liven up the game and bring new content to new players and new options for our existing ones. So, yes, somewhere down the road it may happen, though we couldn't stick a date on it. As for the type of race, another race that's not strictly humanoid is always an option. Believe me, every time the subject comes up, there's a huge variety of suggestions. I won't tell you my favorite except to say that it
Rytan - is bixies!
Vahlar - ticked...and tocked.
Sprite - *Dexar* How many spells can we expect to see in PoR per casting class, and what level range will they be?
Rytan - Each class is getting between 2-3 new spells and/or abilities in PoR. Several of these spells will be examples of the new trap and sphere of influence system that is also a part of this expansion. The method of acquisition will be similar to the one used in DoD and will all be for level 70 characters.
Sprite - *Obsqura_AB* What kind of different high end raid type missions/tasks/expeditions will there be from the Theater of Blood?
Rashere - We're actually going old school with Theater of Blood. The zone is set up to be reminiscent of the old Plane of Fear, a zone that requires several groups to succeed in, but greatly rewards success. In addition, there are a number of raid encounters through the other expansion zones and several mini-boss encounters in Theater itself that lead up to the actual final raid instance in Deathknell.
Sprite - *Shroudy* Many of us are reaching the limits of shrouds and their abilities. To extend their usefullness and give us more reason to continue to play them, will Prophecy of Ro provide any expansion paths for Shrouds in the form of Gear or other abilities?
Rytan - We don’t have any new shroud features planed for PoR, but we would like to expand their functionality in the near future. This would probably take the form of new shrouds that could be unlocked as higher tier shrouds, or even as quest rewards in some cases.
Rytan - There are however several new monster missions that are planned for PoR that use a variety of new monster types that we think players will very much enjoy.
Sprite - *Jenico* is it true that the skill level trival rate is going to be raised?
Ngreth - If you mean, will the tradeskill level cap be increased, we currently have no active plans to do so. That does not mean we will never raise the cap...
Sprite - *Dexar* With monster missions making exp so easy to get, shouldn't we get more aa's in PoR?
Rashere - The XP gain from monster missions is tuned around them taking about an hour to complete and rewarding about an AA to someone at level 70. In that time, you could gain several AAs in other zones. The xp gain in a properly tuned monster mission is less than you'd get elsewhere. The problem we've run into is players finding ways to complete these missions far faster than intended. We're addressing those specific instances and will be adj
Rashere - We're addressing those specific instances and will be adjusting the xp per mission to better fit how long they are actually taking.
Sprite - *ocher* What do raiding guilds have to look forward to in this new expansion?, and are the raids geared for anguish+ guilds ?
Vahlar - With each expansion we continue push the limits of the raiding guilds as much as we can to provide new challenges and events to conquer. And provide rewards. PoR is no different in that respect. Each expansion's end-content will always take you that next step in difficulty. You won't be disappointed.
Sprite - *slacklikeme-DB-DRo* Is the buff filter going to be similar to setup like the audio triggers?
Rashere - In order to block a future buff, all you'll need to do is click a buff you have on you and choose the "Block this buff in the future" option. From that point forward, that buff will not be able to land on you anymore. There's another window you can bring up that lists all the buffs you've blocked, so you can allow them to land again in the future if you like.
Sprite - *Tet* Some middle range players might feel a tad overwhelmed with the current number of AAs in the game and the levels, are you holding back on AAs because of this?
Rashere - In general, we try to do AAs every other expansion to allow time for people to catch up a bit. It's definitely intimidating to look at the ever growing list of AAs and realize how far you have to go to get them all.
Sprite - *oiingo* With the new expansion's release just around the corner, can we expect that the current version of the Demiplane of Blood is likely how the zone will remain?
Vahlar - Yes, the zone will remain that way as part of the storyline for DoD. I will say though that PoR is an extension of the DoD storyline and Mayong's influence on the world is only just beginning.
Sprite - *chellethecat* Rumor had been that we would be seeing new a new class and possibly a new race with this expansion, but as this is not the case, is this something we might be able to look forward to at some point later on?
Rytan - A new race is definitely a possibility in the future, but I very much doubt that we’ll be adding any more classes to EQ. Current class balance issues are complicated enough without adding yet another facet to an already incredibly complex system.
Sprite - *Yaxa* Lore question: Wasn'T Druzzil Ro orginally a Demi-God? When did she ascend to full godhood?
Vahlar - Yes, Druzzil Ro was a demi-god, but through a variety of acts and developments over time that I don't have time to discuss here, she earned herself higher status. I will try to discuss this on the EQ Live lore boards if you want to post your question there as well.
Sprite - *[PVP]Pinhedd_ZS* the overall size of this expansion seems somewhat small, is there anything else being done in order to entice players into purchasing it?
Raghnell - With instancing the old way of using zone count as a measure of expansion size is becoming less accurate. There is a lot of content in this expansion.
Raghnell - That being said we are also adding entire new ways to use this content with traps and destructable objects.
Raghnell - We want to be careful about expanding the world too much in zone size and try to concentrate of adding depth.
Sprite - *Obsqura_AB* Are there any plans to put any alternate advancement points the Prophecy of Ro? I noticed that there was a post saying there might be a few.
Rashere - I'm considering adding a few new AAs to support and enhance the new features, like the player-set traps, but that would be the extent of it.
Sprite - *dendory* do you plan to redo all of the old world / kunark / velious? and increase the rate, since at the current pace we're looking at a 30 years process?
Rytan - We do plan to redo as many of the old zones as possible when we have time. However, we also feel that players also want new areas to explore, so it’s a question of balancing resources. I think you’ll be very happy with the improvements we’ve made in the Ro desert for PoR.
Raghnell - I would like to add one thing.
Rytan - Moving forward we’ll most likely use that zone as the basis for what a revamp should look like. Assuming the feedback from the player base is as good as it has been so far in beta.
Raghnell - Heck yeah we want to redo the whole world...but it might take a while.
Raghnell - But definitely expect more revamps this year
Sprite - *Llaffer* Is something going to be done to make DoN Cultural silk tailoring more in-line with the rest of the materials?
Ngreth - Yes. On the top of my "As soon as I have time" list, is the DoN cultural drop rate issue. So it will be the first thing I work on when I get a bit of time.
Sprite - *Kyvthulhu* It's been stated that Prophecy of Ro is going to feature the "come back of the gods", noteably mentioning Rallos Zek and Druzzil Ro, Rallos specifically asking for your aid against Sullon. Will there be advances in the story explaining Sullon's personal background? And will players who have factioned and now have maximum Mayong Mistmoore faction be allowed to aid him?
Vahlar - The gods have turned their attention back to their children and the mortals, but in the face of a threat to them and the world. You don't actually have the entire story in your question. What Norrathians are going to be asked to do is to make right what they made wrong.
Vahlar - This story goes far beyond Sullon Zek. It's a really interesting and involved story. And there are no plans to have anyone be able to side with Mayong in the near term. He's a threat to the future of Norrath for the moment and even though you might consider yourself an ally, he certainly doesn't see you the same way.
Sprite - *KyrosKran* Following up on Rashere's comment, will allowances be made for knights with holy/unholy steeds to obtain the new warhorse model?
Rashere - I'm hoping to be able to give knights a special upgrade to their signature mounts, but I'm not sure its going to work out yet so it will have to be a nice surprise if it does.
Sprite - *GneissGuy-Rathe* How does Prophecy of Ro fit in with the lore of the prior expansion? Where are these new lands and missions in relation to the rest of Norrath, and what's it got to do with Freeport?
Vahlar - This expansion was actually created a little differently than others in that it is a direct extension of the DoD story. Mayong's ascension is a great threat to all and parts of that story involve every zone in this expansion. Freeport was a good focal point for this story to launch from with a connection between the Academy of Arcane Sciences and Druzzil Ro and her Plane of Magic.
Sprite - *Egras_Zek* You mentioed a way to turn in old horse for new style with /claim. Is this also the case for the Glowing Drogmor and Seru Horse?
Rashere - I'm still debating on those. Those are loot items that represent a very specific creature, namely the fastest drogmor and horse available to most players, so I'm not sure if you should be able to turn those in and get a really fast warhorse instead. If you have a strong feeling about it either way, I'd encourage you to start up a thread on the EQLive forums and voice your opinion.
Sprite - *KyrosKran* PoP included the seer to allow you to track your progression. GoD and later do not have such a tool. Will there be some way to track your PoR progression, and do you plan to add in such methods of tracking for prior expansions?
Rashere - I'm still debating on those. Those are loot items that represent a very specific creature, namely the fastest drogmor and horse available to most players, so I'm not sure if you should be able to turn those in and get a really fast warhorse instead. If you have a strong feeling about it either way, I'd encourage you to start up a thread on the EQLive forums and voice your opinion.
Rashere - lets try a different one...
Rashere - I don't think we've done anything nearly as complex as the PoP progression recently. It's a good idea, though, and something we'll look into.
Sprite - *knight1b* HIi what would be some reasons for me to buy PoR being a Non level 70 as it seems so far that all the content and new items/ablitys are going to be restriced to level 70 players
Rashere - There's actually a sizeable amount of content in PoR for people below level 70. While the new zones themselves start at around level 50, we've also added quite a bit of new content to instances within Freeport that cater to a lower level crowd.
Sprite - *Elddar_Heart* question: How will the Elddar Forest be accessible? Isnt the former Forest now the desert? Thanks (love the lore in PoR keep it up)
Vahlar - With Druzzil Ro actively intervening in the affairs of mortals, she has used her arcane power with the help of Tunare, to open a portal through time to the pristine Elddar Forest that existed prior to Solusek Ro raising the world and creating the Serpentspine Mountains and dry the forest.
Sprite - *Leni* hi, i played eq pre velious, and stopped around discord. when i left my char was deleted but i kept a 40ish sk on. i tried to come back but i found leveling nearly impossible, espically since i've moved onto wow. Has the level up progression to 60 (70 now i guess) been simplied towards more solo players, and is the game still gear based?
Rytan - Seeing as how you’ve been gone a while I think you’ll find that there’s a number of features that we’ve added along the way to make the game more enjoyable and in many ways easier to find a group. The monster mission and shroud system with DoD is one thing you’ll definitely want to look at as an option for grouping and gaining experience when you can’t find like level players.
Rytan - In addition, we realize that there is a gap in the progression curve between 20 and 50 that we very much need to remedy. We’d like to provide a new progression path for players to move towards the upper levels of the game more easily and with more enjoyment.
Rytan - It's definitely a resource management issue, but we feel that it's very important to show new players all of the more advanced features that we've added to make EQ a better game over the years.
Sprite - That will wrap it up for tonight. I’d like to thank the developers for coming! The log for tonight’s chat will be up shortly on http://eq.stratics.com
Sprite - Thank you all for joining us! You can join #EverQuest to chat more about the game.
Raghnell - Thanks everybody!
Ngreth - Bye! Have a great evening!
Vahlar - Thanks!
