I just wanted to highlight the results of the caption competition over at Wizards and Wenches. Check it out.
Some of the sugested captions were very funny.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
Customer support the right way.
The performance issue on Karak Norn has spawned a lot of angst.
It is reassuring to see a response to us the customer that begins to tick the right boxes.
Magnus writes,
I had suggested that we need to see a few things, amongst them an apology and some concrete information. Kudos to Magnus for giving us most of those.
Of course the proof in this pudding will be useful fixes being patched in as soon as possible but I think we can give Magnus some credit.
It is reassuring to see a response to us the customer that begins to tick the right boxes.
Magnus writes,
Good day all!
Thanks for the great patience you've shown through these admittedly frustrating times. The feedback you've shared here and via other channels has been invaluable. In return, I'll share our current understanding of the issue and further explain our motivations for merging servers in the first place.
A curious aspect of the Norn issue is that whereas it's now our largest server, we've got several European servers which are almost as large and because of this, we wanted to exclude the possibility that a hardware issue was at fault. A rigorous analyze by our SysAdmins revealed that the Norn hardware is in good condition and running well within acceptable limits. Consequently, we've now ruled out insufficient or malfunctioning hardware as a possible cause for these problems. For good measure though, we've applied additional monitoring software to stay informed and in order to provide Mythic with more data.
In our correspondence with Mythic, it's become clear that the root to these problems is directly linked with the Tier 4 population and, to some extent, its activity. There seems to be a threshold that - when exceeded - cause a strong performance decrease. This would explain why servers only marginally smaller than Norn doesn't don't share its issues. Seen in this light, one is tempted to conclude that the recent server transfers were a mistake. However, there are two factors which must be mentioned which demand a re-evaluation of this conclusion:
* Mythic have had Norn-size servers for some time
* These servers began showing Norn-type problems after Patch 1.2
Since the transfers were activated only days after Patch 1.2 went live, this issue was not identified quickly enough for us to react and do something about it. In hindsight, it was somewhat unfortunate that the transfers and Patch 1.2 would go live so close to each other. That said, there's a silver lining to this cloud. We know from Mythic's previous experience that Norn-size servers are viable, only that this was - for some reason - changed with Patch 1.2. Mythic are keenly aware of this and redeeming this situation is a top priority. Fixes are en route, and the only question is how soon and how tangible improvements they'll bring.
We're very sorry about all of this and we'll do what we can to make it up for you. Top GOA and Mythic technicians are on top of this and we're all doing what we can to bring about a solution as soon as possible.
I had suggested that we need to see a few things, amongst them an apology and some concrete information. Kudos to Magnus for giving us most of those.
Of course the proof in this pudding will be useful fixes being patched in as soon as possible but I think we can give Magnus some credit.
Nimlets Lost Vale Guide updated
There have been a few updates to the best Lost Vale guide out there.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
My problems with Warhammer
I haven't stepped into Tier 4 for any length of time for over a week now. Prior to this I had been noticing low morale and a very low turnout on the Destruction side. Chat in guild and in our alliance pointed the fingers (whether rightly or wrongly) at game performance and class balance amongst other things.
I noticed while trying to lead during the week that the level of cooperation on our side seems to be dropping of. Large numbers of players in guild and in our alliance didn't turn out for a preplanned event. Where in previous months we had as many as 5 warbands we were just fielding two. I also found while people were happy to do some rvr very few were willing to do the more boring but essential jobs such as scouting and monitoring various BO and keeps. In general there was a lot of selfish play on destruction side with game play I hadn't seen in months rearing its head. Leading in rvr is time consuming and often frustrating. In the past leading in open RvR has been very rewarding and worth the trouble but having to over come the apathy of others is a bridge to far when there are a number other issues that are already undermining your enjoyment of the game.
Twice since then. I have either logged out or moved to an alt when The Inevitable City has been under attack.
There are five reasons that I believe I am not enjoying the game as much.
1. Mass RvR
The games performance during any large scale fight is appalling, not bad, not a bit laggy it is appalling. Warhammers great promise was mass rvr and 6 months in it as failed miserably at delivering it.
I believe if this issue is not addressed very quickly and with tangible results the game lose many more subscription. At the moment there are only 3 tiers of decent play, it is the main reason some people are still playing , pvp in the lower tiers is enjoyable and with the advent of the choppa many people are trying it out.
2. AOE
Both AoE damage and healing are too effective. I raise my eyebrow at the idea of skill in an MMO but if ever there was a skilless approach it is Mythics present attachment to AoE. A simple solution would be to make single target heals and damage more effective while at the same time reducing the effectiveness of AoE healing and damage. AoE has its place but not in its present form. Perhaps enabling damage from friendly fire is an option.
3. Class Balance
At the moment I think Mythic have completely lost control of class balance. The disparity between a magus and its mirror the Engineer is the first of many examples that come to mind. Not only is the game performance shockingly poor, the recent changes that have been made to class balance have made melee classes redundant in large parts of endgame pve.
Corwynn makes a pretty valid observation.
The great pity is that some very good changes were introduced, the Swordmaster was made into a viable class but you do begin to wonder if its accident rather than design. I have never been a fan of nerfing classes but some retuning is needed on a number of classes. That some classes were not looked at in 1.2 with anything approaching an understanding of how the game is actually played is at best shoddy at worst incompetent.
4. Patching
I am genuinely believe that for every inch Mytic advance the game with a patch they also manage to move half an inch backwards. The sheer amount of issues with performance in Lost Vale for example has got to the stage of being laughable. If it weren't for swift response from CSR our guild's last few LV runs would not have taken place.
Some time ago I wonder about staffing numbers in Mythic and whether they had the manpower to test. It is begining to seem that they do not have that capacity at the moment. You have to wonder whether Mythic are up to running an MMO to the standards expected by those who played World of Warcraft.
I am aware of those who accused Mythic of not listening to its player base in Beta but it does seem that they did not listen to their player base during the testing for patch 1.2 either. Perhaps it time Mythic's communications with its subscribers contained more fact and less generalities, the state of the game and recent dev chat were for the most part. We will do something, someday about something maybe, doesn't cut it.
5. Tanking
One of my hopes for this game was that it would be possible to play a tank class as a tank rather than as a glorified melee dps. The recent changes to the Black Orc, while certainly not crippling to the class as a whole have made anything other than a choice of 2-handed dps spec in pvp foolish.
The idea of a defencive melee support role for a tank has gone from this game.
In Conclusion:
Players on out faction on Karak Norn are getting pissed off as Synlaw points out when he says this
I agreed with his sentiment
At the moment my time in game has decreased. I spend some of that time playing scenarios and a lot more of it playing my choppa (lvl 20). If the Choppa wasnt as enjoyable and the lower tiers so active I would be back in World of Warcraft. For the moment Warhammer is keeping my subscription but it needs to work hard and work quickly to ensure I resubscribe when my billing period ends.
I noticed while trying to lead during the week that the level of cooperation on our side seems to be dropping of. Large numbers of players in guild and in our alliance didn't turn out for a preplanned event. Where in previous months we had as many as 5 warbands we were just fielding two. I also found while people were happy to do some rvr very few were willing to do the more boring but essential jobs such as scouting and monitoring various BO and keeps. In general there was a lot of selfish play on destruction side with game play I hadn't seen in months rearing its head. Leading in rvr is time consuming and often frustrating. In the past leading in open RvR has been very rewarding and worth the trouble but having to over come the apathy of others is a bridge to far when there are a number other issues that are already undermining your enjoyment of the game.
Twice since then. I have either logged out or moved to an alt when The Inevitable City has been under attack.
There are five reasons that I believe I am not enjoying the game as much.
1. Mass RvR
The games performance during any large scale fight is appalling, not bad, not a bit laggy it is appalling. Warhammers great promise was mass rvr and 6 months in it as failed miserably at delivering it.
I believe if this issue is not addressed very quickly and with tangible results the game lose many more subscription. At the moment there are only 3 tiers of decent play, it is the main reason some people are still playing , pvp in the lower tiers is enjoyable and with the advent of the choppa many people are trying it out.
2. AOE
Both AoE damage and healing are too effective. I raise my eyebrow at the idea of skill in an MMO but if ever there was a skilless approach it is Mythics present attachment to AoE. A simple solution would be to make single target heals and damage more effective while at the same time reducing the effectiveness of AoE healing and damage. AoE has its place but not in its present form. Perhaps enabling damage from friendly fire is an option.
3. Class Balance
At the moment I think Mythic have completely lost control of class balance. The disparity between a magus and its mirror the Engineer is the first of many examples that come to mind. Not only is the game performance shockingly poor, the recent changes that have been made to class balance have made melee classes redundant in large parts of endgame pve.
Corwynn makes a pretty valid observation.
Inside the faction Destro has been pretty nicely balanced from the beginning, WEs melted faces but died fast enough to keep their overall damage in check and all the RDPS careers could fulfill their respective functions, with Squig Herders being the ones worst off. The balance between Order and Destro however hasn’t been that good, what with the huge amount of players playing BWs, the single most effective DPS career.
The great pity is that some very good changes were introduced, the Swordmaster was made into a viable class but you do begin to wonder if its accident rather than design. I have never been a fan of nerfing classes but some retuning is needed on a number of classes. That some classes were not looked at in 1.2 with anything approaching an understanding of how the game is actually played is at best shoddy at worst incompetent.
4. Patching
I am genuinely believe that for every inch Mytic advance the game with a patch they also manage to move half an inch backwards. The sheer amount of issues with performance in Lost Vale for example has got to the stage of being laughable. If it weren't for swift response from CSR our guild's last few LV runs would not have taken place.
Some time ago I wonder about staffing numbers in Mythic and whether they had the manpower to test. It is begining to seem that they do not have that capacity at the moment. You have to wonder whether Mythic are up to running an MMO to the standards expected by those who played World of Warcraft.
I am aware of those who accused Mythic of not listening to its player base in Beta but it does seem that they did not listen to their player base during the testing for patch 1.2 either. Perhaps it time Mythic's communications with its subscribers contained more fact and less generalities, the state of the game and recent dev chat were for the most part. We will do something, someday about something maybe, doesn't cut it.
5. Tanking
One of my hopes for this game was that it would be possible to play a tank class as a tank rather than as a glorified melee dps. The recent changes to the Black Orc, while certainly not crippling to the class as a whole have made anything other than a choice of 2-handed dps spec in pvp foolish.
The idea of a defencive melee support role for a tank has gone from this game.
In Conclusion:
Players on out faction on Karak Norn are getting pissed off as Synlaw points out when he says this
Dear GOA / Magnus / Whoever,
We - the players - have been very hopeful for a quick resolution to our issues. Many of us have decided to stick with our subscriptions for an extra month pending expected fixes. A week has passed, and we have yet to see any progress whatsoever. In fact, the server - and the game itself - seems to be getting worse and worse, bursting along the stitches of spit and chewgum. There is no other analogy which could explain why it has little to no lag on one day, then a day later everything falls apart with instances crashing, 10-15 second casting lag, etc.
I am not aware if Mythic developers are actually reading these forums; but please let them be aware that you have an entire server crashing & burning subscription-wise due to their unprofessional testing and implementing of patch 1.2. Having consulted with the majority of Destruction guilds on Karak Norn, it is evident that the Destruction players are giving Warhammer until April to sort out the server, and realm balance issues.
We are not asking for anything unreasonable. We are asking for an opportunity to play and enjoy the product we're paying for in relatively LAGFREE circumstances. Much as I hate to say this again, nobody is going to pay for beta-testing something that should have been solved a long time ago, considering the game is now approaching its 1-year mark. The main problem is the lack of any sort of addressing the issues at hand and maintaining a week-by-week habit of keeping the community updated as to what's exactly going on and what's being done to take care of the situation.
If nothing is done by the end of April, I'm sorry but you will have to start organizing new transfers. Because the population of Karak Norn will drop, and it will drop like a rock.
I agreed with his sentiment
At the moment my time in game has decreased. I spend some of that time playing scenarios and a lot more of it playing my choppa (lvl 20). If the Choppa wasnt as enjoyable and the lower tiers so active I would be back in World of Warcraft. For the moment Warhammer is keeping my subscription but it needs to work hard and work quickly to ensure I resubscribe when my billing period ends.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Community time again
Its that time of the week again where we highlight other blogs.
This week its Evan Sims.
Evan is a game designer so I was very interested in his advice on tweaking performance in Warhammer.
His ingame tweaks include.
This week its Evan Sims.
Evan is a game designer so I was very interested in his advice on tweaking performance in Warhammer.
His ingame tweaks include.
Lightmaps & Specular — By far the biggest performance booster. Disable these options and restart the game client. You will notice a drop in visual quality, but get a huge boost to your FPS in return. This impacts the lighting quality of the game.
Shadows — I recommend setting this to Balanced. This will set all NPC and PC (including yourself) shadows to simpler, non-dynamic textures. They still look pretty decent, and this tweak can help a lot in crowded areas like Altdorf or Inevitable City, or during keep, fortress or city raids. I haven’t noticed a huge performance difference disabling them completely, and I think the effect they give is worth the few frames.
Disable EAX — If you have a Creative card that supports EAX, I don’t recommend using it. Especially if you’re an unfortunate soul running Vista.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Warhammer: Its own worst enemy?
So this evening an old Guildy (old in all senses) turned up out of the blue. He had returned from Warcraft on a 30 day trial period designed to get those who had left the game to return. Surely this is a triumph for Warhammer, he will get to experience the many improvements in the game.
He was enthusiastic and eager to learn what had changed.
Unfortunately for him, most of the feedback on vent was negative. It is is not the case that there haven't been many improvements. His class, the disciple is great fun to play and is far better than it was when he left. He loves to pvp so wasn't interested in PvE improvements but was glad to hear about influence rewards for RvR. He loved the fact that scenarios that he had never got to play were popping (you remember when only Serpent's was played don't you)
Yet for all these improvements his first experience on the game on return was negative.
The problem was once again server performance. The inevitable city was seiged on Karak Norn and the game was nigh unplayable.
As this has been the case for sometime the general mood in guild and in our alliance and in deed in general on the destruction faction was very very low.
So here we had a player returning looking for PvP finding that the game that promised so much in terms of mass PvP was still not delivering and the players he was coming back to were talking about upcoming games they could migrate to.
He will play during his 30 day period but how many other will quit if there isnt a solution?
Many people waited for patch 1.2 and have been disappointed by it. The next patches may address issues and indeed they may bring about an improvement.
The real issue is that their may be too few people left to benefit from the changes, leading to a downward spiral, as the end game is population dependant.
Its very easy to stop the rot.
Alknowledge that their is a problem, apologise, disclose whats being done about it and then actually fix it.
He was enthusiastic and eager to learn what had changed.
Unfortunately for him, most of the feedback on vent was negative. It is is not the case that there haven't been many improvements. His class, the disciple is great fun to play and is far better than it was when he left. He loves to pvp so wasn't interested in PvE improvements but was glad to hear about influence rewards for RvR. He loved the fact that scenarios that he had never got to play were popping (you remember when only Serpent's was played don't you)
Yet for all these improvements his first experience on the game on return was negative.
The problem was once again server performance. The inevitable city was seiged on Karak Norn and the game was nigh unplayable.
As this has been the case for sometime the general mood in guild and in our alliance and in deed in general on the destruction faction was very very low.
So here we had a player returning looking for PvP finding that the game that promised so much in terms of mass PvP was still not delivering and the players he was coming back to were talking about upcoming games they could migrate to.
He will play during his 30 day period but how many other will quit if there isnt a solution?
Many people waited for patch 1.2 and have been disappointed by it. The next patches may address issues and indeed they may bring about an improvement.
The real issue is that their may be too few people left to benefit from the changes, leading to a downward spiral, as the end game is population dependant.
Its very easy to stop the rot.
Alknowledge that their is a problem, apologise, disclose whats being done about it and then actually fix it.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Outnumbered in scenarios, there is always a brightside
I am always a fan of good news stories. Tonite we got into a scenario to find we were outnumbered 2 to 1. Usually you get rolfstomped but sometimes you dont, this time we did the stomping. it gave us a good chuckle.
As the scenario closed we were hunting the Order side down to their camps.
Some times you dont mind being the underdog.
Also of note is the First level 40 Choppa on the server, Slashingmadness.
As the scenario closed we were hunting the Order side down to their camps.
Some times you dont mind being the underdog.
Also of note is the First level 40 Choppa on the server, Slashingmadness.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Defending your Fort, please form an orderly Q
I took this last night, we wanted to get some cordination on door repairs by tanks.
This seemed to work.
This seemed to work.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
State of the Game, Whats coming for ORvR - Snap reaction
So Mark Jacobs has made his state of the game address.
If we get through the fluff what does he actually say.
All good, especially healer love.
The detail will make or break this, we will have to see what more we can learn.
I can see this being very popular. I have already been thinking how best to use this system. should I pick as healers, all high renown players or players with high play times. I can see this being fun.
Interesting, with some great potential, short on actual detail
Could be fluff, could be great, we need to see the detail. An adtional ramp will be a great move.
About time.
I suspect that some people may get very annoyed about the lack of detail and it does read as if Mark was backed into a corner and wrote this against his will. Overall, lots of potential and I am optomistic. Mythic do seem to be concious of flaws in the game and they are trying to address them.
If we get through the fluff what does he actually say.
1.2.1 also contains the initial Keep Upgrade system (more on this below), more improvements to T3 in terms of content and experience and the Combat and Careers team will give some extra loving to the Archmage, Shaman, White Lion, and Marauder, another Live Event and much more
All good, especially healer love.
We are also working on a new ORvR Influence bar which is filled by killing players and unlocks higher renown ranks in T4. We also want to improve XP, Renown and Influence Rewards for fighting other players apart from those bars.
The detail will make or break this, we will have to see what more we can learn.
We are also looking at implementing a “Nemesis” system which tracks the top 20 enemy players that kill you and which will give you rewards for hunting them down.
I can see this being very popular. I have already been thinking how best to use this system. should I pick as healers, all high renown players or players with high play times. I can see this being fun.
We want to make BOs more relevant and necessary for the Keep take to Zone Capture progression.
Interesting, with some great potential, short on actual detail
Our current plans include putting in a Keep Upgrade system that encourages guilds to claim and upgrade Keeps. These upgrades would be usage upgrades, not just visual upgrades. We are looking at giving interesting and useful things to guilds who upgrade Keeps; defense improvements, guilds rewards, etc. We also want to put in more attacker options, more attacker abilities, and experiment with new types of siege warfare. Down the ramp (a pun a day and all that) a bit, we are also working on putting in an additional ramp to the Keep Lord room in every Keep and Fortress in the game.
Could be fluff, could be great, we need to see the detail. An adtional ramp will be a great move.
players will no longer be able to bypass other players in City Selection and you will no longer have City Instances which are 40 vs. 0!
About time.
I suspect that some people may get very annoyed about the lack of detail and it does read as if Mark was backed into a corner and wrote this against his will. Overall, lots of potential and I am optomistic. Mythic do seem to be concious of flaws in the game and they are trying to address them.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Cooking Warhammer style
At the recent gathering in Dublin on March 9th, I was explaining how to use Warhammer to cook your dinner. Book of Grudges has reminded me of my drunken ramblings and set me the challenge of typing up my recipe. Other bloggers also have a passion for cooking so we may get a few others to try this.
The principle is that you use in game times to make sure you don't burn your dinner.
How to slow roast a chicken in Lost Vale, using an average group(3-5 Wards).
Needed a copy of Warhammer online
1 good quality whole chicken
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large lemon
5 cloves garlic
Fresh thyme
Olive oil
One Blorc
One Chosen
One Magus
One Witchelf
One Disciple of Kayne
One Zealot
You may change any of these classes in preference to your own choice of seasoning.
When you land in Avelorn and are waiting for your inevitably late guild mates, rinse the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Rub the chicken inside and out with sea salt and black pepper. Take the whole lemon and carefully pierce a few times. Place the whole pierced lemon, garlic cloves and few sprigs of fresh thyme into the cavity of the chicken.
Turn you oven on to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and leave. Start Lost Vale
Upon killing Arzranok you can place the Chicken in the oven. Kill the trash up to Malghor Greathorn. Before you engage Malghor adjust the heat in your oven to 250 degrees.
Finish the left wing and start on the right. In the right wing as soon as you have killed the Butcher Gutbeater, adjust you oven temperature to 450 minutes. Kill the trash up until Gorak the Ancient.
Remove chicken from Oven and allow it to sit until you have finished the 2nd wing.
It is important that you do not wipe so use a good guide to LV. If you are particularly efficient in Lost Vale advance by one Boss encounter, place chicken in oven at Malghor.
For those of you who prefer a PVP environment the same recipe can be adjusted for zone domination.
The principle is that you use in game times to make sure you don't burn your dinner.
How to slow roast a chicken in Lost Vale, using an average group(3-5 Wards).
Needed a copy of Warhammer online
1 good quality whole chicken
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large lemon
5 cloves garlic
Fresh thyme
Olive oil
One Blorc
One Chosen
One Magus
One Witchelf
One Disciple of Kayne
One Zealot
You may change any of these classes in preference to your own choice of seasoning.
When you land in Avelorn and are waiting for your inevitably late guild mates, rinse the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Rub the chicken inside and out with sea salt and black pepper. Take the whole lemon and carefully pierce a few times. Place the whole pierced lemon, garlic cloves and few sprigs of fresh thyme into the cavity of the chicken.
Turn you oven on to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and leave. Start Lost Vale
Upon killing Arzranok you can place the Chicken in the oven. Kill the trash up to Malghor Greathorn. Before you engage Malghor adjust the heat in your oven to 250 degrees.
Finish the left wing and start on the right. In the right wing as soon as you have killed the Butcher Gutbeater, adjust you oven temperature to 450 minutes. Kill the trash up until Gorak the Ancient.
Remove chicken from Oven and allow it to sit until you have finished the 2nd wing.
It is important that you do not wipe so use a good guide to LV. If you are particularly efficient in Lost Vale advance by one Boss encounter, place chicken in oven at Malghor.
For those of you who prefer a PVP environment the same recipe can be adjusted for zone domination.
A quick thanks
A quick thanks to all the GOA guys for a great night out, especially Nic and Magnus.
I hope you all made it into work.
It was great to meet the people who are going to be the communiity managers for the various forums, such as the french forum manager Madam Tullé. I think it is taking her some time to come to terms with our drinking culture.
I was very much taken with how enthusastic everyone I met was for the game and the esprit de corp(as Mde Tullé would say) was excellent. They really seem to enjoy their work and hopefully we will see that in the forums.
It was also great to meet some other bloggers and gamers on what was nerdtastic evening.
I hope you all made it into work.
It was great to meet the people who are going to be the communiity managers for the various forums, such as the french forum manager Madam Tullé. I think it is taking her some time to come to terms with our drinking culture.
I was very much taken with how enthusastic everyone I met was for the game and the esprit de corp(as Mde Tullé would say) was excellent. They really seem to enjoy their work and hopefully we will see that in the forums.
It was also great to meet some other bloggers and gamers on what was nerdtastic evening.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
ZOMG server transfer disaster, News at 11
I wrote a short time ago about players from Karak Hirn transferring to Karak Norn
Our alliance Red Eciplse (formerly Shadow Wind) has transferred from Karak Hirn.
At the moment the constituent guilds are:
Apex
DarkWind
Explicit Content
Fractal
Filth
Tainted
The Rigante
The Unnamed
What a hectic introduction to a new server. Five minutes after moving server I find that a fortress is under attack. A very enjoyable defence of our Inevitable City instance. No points for Order in the instance we were defending as an alliance(No: 95).
I could see from following chat that some misunderstandings between new arrivals and others ensued. Corwynn has an excellent write up on it all. He could write a thesis on trolling but its a fascinating piece if your a forum warrior.
One of the huge issues raised is the use of caps. In many games CAPS ARE CONSIDERED RUDE AND ANNOYING.HOWEVER THE MAIN ALLIANCES WHO HAVE TRANSFERRED FROM HIRN HABITUALLY USE CAPS WHEN LEADING A ZONE LOCK OR FORT ATTEMPT.
This has led to consternation.
It has been suggested that "I'm sorry but you moved to OUR server, so you adapt to OUR rules."
Unfortunately when hundreds of active and coordinated level 40 players move to your server the rules change. It is unreasonable to suggest they stay the same just as it is unreasonable for the new comers to impose their own rules.
I am a user of and an advocate for CAPS, when I lead events I use them, other leaders in my alliance use them as well. They stand out and they make simple orders more prominent. The vast majority of players do not care one way or the other they want to be where the action is and they want to win. Yesterday the guys using caps locked Thunder mountain(Twice), Kadrin Valley once and Caledor back to Dragonwake. They couldn't have done it if the guys that don't use caps hadn't been helping them.
So is this post to highlight how the triumph of getting a whole community to work together has turned to dust with internecine feuding.
Yes it is, Damn you GOA.
Actually I am joking. Just as Magnus said a community can work something out in regards to a transfer, I am sure he would say that teething problems on a new server are to be expected and will be sorted out by communities as well.
The good news is that we are already doing this.
We all know forums don't often give an accurate picture of the reality of a server. The forums have players from my own guild flaming players of the main destruction alliance. In reality myself and the alliance that I am a member of and that already established alliance were working together over 12 hours yesterday.
Tells were sent, whispers received. We pulled of coordinated attacks on order forces from multiple directions. We sent information to each other. we swapped zones to back each other up when needed to stop locks in other zones. we split the duties on keep takes
So while the forums are full of bluff and bravado the game was full of action and fun.
With a merger like this the Norn server is not going to stay the same nor is the Hirn server going to be rebuilt. We will even have more folk joining us from other servers.
All we are going to have is the esteem that exists between equals.
Some people are already on this page of the story, the slower readers will catch up.
Our alliance Red Eciplse (formerly Shadow Wind) has transferred from Karak Hirn.
At the moment the constituent guilds are:
Apex
DarkWind
Explicit Content
Fractal
Filth
Tainted
The Rigante
The Unnamed
What a hectic introduction to a new server. Five minutes after moving server I find that a fortress is under attack. A very enjoyable defence of our Inevitable City instance. No points for Order in the instance we were defending as an alliance(No: 95).
I could see from following chat that some misunderstandings between new arrivals and others ensued. Corwynn has an excellent write up on it all. He could write a thesis on trolling but its a fascinating piece if your a forum warrior.
One of the huge issues raised is the use of caps. In many games CAPS ARE CONSIDERED RUDE AND ANNOYING.HOWEVER THE MAIN ALLIANCES WHO HAVE TRANSFERRED FROM HIRN HABITUALLY USE CAPS WHEN LEADING A ZONE LOCK OR FORT ATTEMPT.
This has led to consternation.
It has been suggested that "I'm sorry but you moved to OUR server, so you adapt to OUR rules."
Unfortunately when hundreds of active and coordinated level 40 players move to your server the rules change. It is unreasonable to suggest they stay the same just as it is unreasonable for the new comers to impose their own rules.
I am a user of and an advocate for CAPS, when I lead events I use them, other leaders in my alliance use them as well. They stand out and they make simple orders more prominent. The vast majority of players do not care one way or the other they want to be where the action is and they want to win. Yesterday the guys using caps locked Thunder mountain(Twice), Kadrin Valley once and Caledor back to Dragonwake. They couldn't have done it if the guys that don't use caps hadn't been helping them.
So is this post to highlight how the triumph of getting a whole community to work together has turned to dust with internecine feuding.
Yes it is, Damn you GOA.
Actually I am joking. Just as Magnus said a community can work something out in regards to a transfer, I am sure he would say that teething problems on a new server are to be expected and will be sorted out by communities as well.
The good news is that we are already doing this.
We all know forums don't often give an accurate picture of the reality of a server. The forums have players from my own guild flaming players of the main destruction alliance. In reality myself and the alliance that I am a member of and that already established alliance were working together over 12 hours yesterday.
Tells were sent, whispers received. We pulled of coordinated attacks on order forces from multiple directions. We sent information to each other. we swapped zones to back each other up when needed to stop locks in other zones. we split the duties on keep takes
So while the forums are full of bluff and bravado the game was full of action and fun.
With a merger like this the Norn server is not going to stay the same nor is the Hirn server going to be rebuilt. We will even have more folk joining us from other servers.
All we are going to have is the esteem that exists between equals.
Some people are already on this page of the story, the slower readers will catch up.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Lagwar: guide to zone domination
Its that time of the week again where we highlight another member of the warhammer community.
Lagwar has a sucinct and accurate guide to zone domination.
If you read nothing else from lagwar know this:
Lagwar has a sucinct and accurate guide to zone domination.
If you read nothing else from lagwar know this:
The optimal method:: This is NOT meant to maximize renown gained from BFO’s and keeps, this is meant to capture the zone as FAST AS POSSIBLE. Take both of the keeps as close to simultaneously as possible. Guard them well, camp the opposing realms warcamp, or queue scenarios, but DO NOT LOSE THE KEEPS. Now that keep doors reset if they aren’t broken down after 20 minutes (20 min not in combat) it is very possible to successfully chain defend keeps. Once you’re at an hour and 15 minutes of holding the keeps, go out and take all the BFO’s, try to capture them as close to simultaneously as possible as well. Now if you successfully hold everything, the BFO’s will finish their zone domination counter at approximately the same time as the keeps. Start to finish it will only take 2 hours to flip the zone with successful defense.
Friday, March 6, 2009
So onward to Karak Norn
So GOA decided to merge some more servers and my server Karak Hirn is on the list.
It was a shock to lot of people.
Magnus from GOA posted the following.
So while some fumed, others tried to do just that.
The two major destruction alliances discussed it between them, as did Order's. People took the time to learn a bit about the possible destinations.
At 8pm a large number of Order and Destruction represenatives met and discussed the transfer. Information was shared, opinions offered. It was incredibly civil and the difficulties of all particpants were catered for. In the end we opted for Karak Norn. We couldnt have done this without the cooperation of all particpants.
It was a pleasure to see "friends, guilds, alliances and foes" decide to transfer to the same server. It was great that so many different people could turn a problem into an oppurtunity.
Afterwards the fun started. We went and took some screen shots to commemorate.
Some more very good Shots and another film.
It was a shock to lot of people.
Magnus from GOA posted the following.
Dear Hirn,
as some of you know, I've played on Hirn from day one and have first-hand experience of the unique and plainly awesome community found here. The decision to close Hirn has not been taken lightheartedly and has followed lengthy and sometimes turbulent discussions, but we all agree that something had to be done about population development on Hirn as well as our other English servers. Put plainly, they just weren't sporting the kind of populations we think we owe our players and some tough decisions had to go through.
A community consist of the players which are part of it and little else. I hope you'll all talk with your friends, guilds, alliances and foes to make sure you end up on the same server, allowing you to continue to develop the relationships you have built on Hirn over these months.
-Magnus
So while some fumed, others tried to do just that.
The two major destruction alliances discussed it between them, as did Order's. People took the time to learn a bit about the possible destinations.
At 8pm a large number of Order and Destruction represenatives met and discussed the transfer. Information was shared, opinions offered. It was incredibly civil and the difficulties of all particpants were catered for. In the end we opted for Karak Norn. We couldnt have done this without the cooperation of all particpants.
It was a pleasure to see "friends, guilds, alliances and foes" decide to transfer to the same server. It was great that so many different people could turn a problem into an oppurtunity.
Afterwards the fun started. We went and took some screen shots to commemorate.
Some more very good Shots and another film.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Domination system flawed?
We wanted to see what half a warband could do if they attacked at an off peak play time. So while everyone else was a sleep we locked Thunder Mountain, Caledor and Praag, differnet players took part but we never had more than 14 or 15.
Half a warband can lock 3 zones, this needs to be fixed.
Edit: It strikes me that a server transfer is potentially a fix to the issue of late night attacks. more players means greater off-peak activity.
Half a warband can lock 3 zones, this needs to be fixed.
Edit: It strikes me that a server transfer is potentially a fix to the issue of late night attacks. more players means greater off-peak activity.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
LIVE: First impressions of the patch.
The good:
I am very happy with the new mounts. Mrs Wiggles got a lovely dye job.
I got a stack of Chaos Black Dye so my Black Orc actually is black.
The new scenarios seems very good.
Big slash is indeed 360% and it may be my imagination but it sends people further back.
Tracking your warband on the map.
Zone domination system adds a new dynamic to the game.
The bad:
A few Crashes.
Lag in the new Scenario.
Witch elves are complaining.
Scenarios for Tier 1 and Tier 2 dont seem to pop.
Archmages seem to have increased survivability, there are claims their detaunt is bugged.
Block seems a bit buggy.
Population imbalance will be a greater issue with Zone domination system.
I am very happy with the new mounts. Mrs Wiggles got a lovely dye job.
I got a stack of Chaos Black Dye so my Black Orc actually is black.
The new scenarios seems very good.
Big slash is indeed 360% and it may be my imagination but it sends people further back.
Tracking your warband on the map.
Zone domination system adds a new dynamic to the game.
The bad:
A few Crashes.
Lag in the new Scenario.
Witch elves are complaining.
Scenarios for Tier 1 and Tier 2 dont seem to pop.
Archmages seem to have increased survivability, there are claims their detaunt is bugged.
Block seems a bit buggy.
Population imbalance will be a greater issue with Zone domination system.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Patch due soon, a pity is a poor one for Black Orcs.
1.2 will be going live tomorrow morning, 3/3/09. All North American servers will be brought down at 7:00 AM EST with Oceanic servers to follow at 9:00 AM EST. We expect all servers to be back up and running by 1:00 PM EST.
As always be sure you check the Herald for the latest information and updates during downtimes. We will update this message in the morning with a link to the final 1.2 Patch Notes.
At the moment the Black orc notes read:
Bug Fixes:
* 'Ave Another One: Fixed a bug that allowed this ability to gain benefits from stats.
* Can't Hit Me!: This ability will now behave correctly when interrupted.
* Challenge: This ability no longer requires an enemy target.
* Da Biggest: This ability will now continue after zoning.
* Da Greenest: This ability will now continue after zoning.
* Da Greenest: This ability's armor-buffing effect will now scale with level.
* Da Toughest: This ability will now continue after zoning.
* Da Toughest: Tooltip will now upgrade correctly.
* Loudmouth: Fixed a bug that allowed this ability to do critical damage.
* Loudmouth: Fixed a bug that allowed this ability to gain benefits from stats.
* Not in Da face: Damage increased to proper amount.
* Puddle O' Muck: This ability will now correctlyactually snare targets.
* Rock 'Ard: This ability no longer claims to lead to Gud Plan, or highlights while you have a Gud Plan.
* Stop Hittin' da Runts: The tactic will now restore the proper amount of Action Points.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will no longer interrupt itself while moving.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now behave correctly when interrupted.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now cause the caster to be considered in Da Best Plan for the duration of the effect.
* Waaagh!: This ability's debuff icon tooltip now states correct reduction type, and no longer requires a target.
* Where You Going?: This ability's description has been updated to correctly reflect that this is actually a PBAoE.
Balance Changes:
* Big Brawlin': This ability will now disorient targets by 25%.
* Can Youz Hear me Now?: The damage boost of this ability has been increased.
* Can't Hit Me!: This ability will now deal Corporeal Damage.
* Can't Touch Us: Will now absorb more damage.
* Da Bestest!: This ability has been renamed to "Guud at Big Choppin!" and will now increase damage and Parry rate while using a great weapon.
* Da Big Un': This ability will now deal more damage, and affect a larger area.
* Da Biggest!: This ability will now grant a stat buff to nearby group members.
* Da Toughest: This ability will now grant less Wounds and health to the Black Orc when it triggers.
* Dat Was Great!: This Tactic has been changed to match the changes to Wot armor?. The Tactic will now increase the duration of Wot armor?, and reduce the victim's Toughness.
* Down Ya Go: This ability will now deal more damage, knock the target down for 3 seconds, and cost no AP to activate.
* Keep it Goin!: The damage boost of this ability has been increased.
* Loudmouth: The damage of this ability has been increased and changed to Corporeal. However, this damage will not critically hit or receive benefit from stats.
* Not in da Face!: This ability will now deal more damage and also make you and your group briefly immune to disabling effects.
* Rock 'Ard: This ability will now absorb more damage.
* Savin' Me Hide: This ability will now deal more damage, and will also reduce the magical damage taken by you and your group.
* Shut Yer Face: This ability will now deal more damage and cost no AP to activate.
* Skull Thumper: The additional damage caused by this ability's debuff has been increased, is now mitigated as Corporeal damage, and no longer gains an increase from stats. Additionally, the damage from this effect will show up on its own line in the combat log.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now deal more damage but will receive less damage contribution from stats.
* Taunt/Challenge: Will no longer force player pets to attack you.
* WAAAAAAAGH!: This ability will now deal more damage.
* Wot armor?: This ability has had its stacking % armor debuff replaced with a fixed-value armor debuff. Additionally, it will now apply its maximum debuff value in a single hit.
So a few new ones in here:
T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now cause the caster to be considered in Da Best Plan for the duration of the effect.
A fix to long standing issue. Good Job.
* Taunt/Challenge: Will no longer force player pets to attack you.
A bloody stupid nerf. So much for being a tank in PVP.
*Stab you gooder: Reduced the amount of bonus critical damage given by this tactic.
Idiotic nerf based on issues with the Choppa.
It seems that Big Slash is now 360 degree, if this is the case its a nice buff.
Overall its seems as if its a patch for 2-handers. Some great individual buffs and fixes to the class but they lack a coherency that might be expected. Black Orcs have been devalued as tanks and using a sword and shield has taken a nerf.
Feedback from Black Orcs seems to be have been ignored and EU PTS feedback seems to be beyond a joke.
As always be sure you check the Herald for the latest information and updates during downtimes. We will update this message in the morning with a link to the final 1.2 Patch Notes.
At the moment the Black orc notes read:
Bug Fixes:
* 'Ave Another One: Fixed a bug that allowed this ability to gain benefits from stats.
* Can't Hit Me!: This ability will now behave correctly when interrupted.
* Challenge: This ability no longer requires an enemy target.
* Da Biggest: This ability will now continue after zoning.
* Da Greenest: This ability will now continue after zoning.
* Da Greenest: This ability's armor-buffing effect will now scale with level.
* Da Toughest: This ability will now continue after zoning.
* Da Toughest: Tooltip will now upgrade correctly.
* Loudmouth: Fixed a bug that allowed this ability to do critical damage.
* Loudmouth: Fixed a bug that allowed this ability to gain benefits from stats.
* Not in Da face: Damage increased to proper amount.
* Puddle O' Muck: This ability will now correctlyactually snare targets.
* Rock 'Ard: This ability no longer claims to lead to Gud Plan, or highlights while you have a Gud Plan.
* Stop Hittin' da Runts: The tactic will now restore the proper amount of Action Points.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will no longer interrupt itself while moving.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now behave correctly when interrupted.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now cause the caster to be considered in Da Best Plan for the duration of the effect.
* Waaagh!: This ability's debuff icon tooltip now states correct reduction type, and no longer requires a target.
* Where You Going?: This ability's description has been updated to correctly reflect that this is actually a PBAoE.
Balance Changes:
* Big Brawlin': This ability will now disorient targets by 25%.
* Can Youz Hear me Now?: The damage boost of this ability has been increased.
* Can't Hit Me!: This ability will now deal Corporeal Damage.
* Can't Touch Us: Will now absorb more damage.
* Da Bestest!: This ability has been renamed to "Guud at Big Choppin!" and will now increase damage and Parry rate while using a great weapon.
* Da Big Un': This ability will now deal more damage, and affect a larger area.
* Da Biggest!: This ability will now grant a stat buff to nearby group members.
* Da Toughest: This ability will now grant less Wounds and health to the Black Orc when it triggers.
* Dat Was Great!: This Tactic has been changed to match the changes to Wot armor?. The Tactic will now increase the duration of Wot armor?, and reduce the victim's Toughness.
* Down Ya Go: This ability will now deal more damage, knock the target down for 3 seconds, and cost no AP to activate.
* Keep it Goin!: The damage boost of this ability has been increased.
* Loudmouth: The damage of this ability has been increased and changed to Corporeal. However, this damage will not critically hit or receive benefit from stats.
* Not in da Face!: This ability will now deal more damage and also make you and your group briefly immune to disabling effects.
* Rock 'Ard: This ability will now absorb more damage.
* Savin' Me Hide: This ability will now deal more damage, and will also reduce the magical damage taken by you and your group.
* Shut Yer Face: This ability will now deal more damage and cost no AP to activate.
* Skull Thumper: The additional damage caused by this ability's debuff has been increased, is now mitigated as Corporeal damage, and no longer gains an increase from stats. Additionally, the damage from this effect will show up on its own line in the combat log.
* T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now deal more damage but will receive less damage contribution from stats.
* Taunt/Challenge: Will no longer force player pets to attack you.
* WAAAAAAAGH!: This ability will now deal more damage.
* Wot armor?: This ability has had its stacking % armor debuff replaced with a fixed-value armor debuff. Additionally, it will now apply its maximum debuff value in a single hit.
So a few new ones in here:
T'ree Hit Combo: This ability will now cause the caster to be considered in Da Best Plan for the duration of the effect.
A fix to long standing issue. Good Job.
* Taunt/Challenge: Will no longer force player pets to attack you.
A bloody stupid nerf. So much for being a tank in PVP.
*Stab you gooder: Reduced the amount of bonus critical damage given by this tactic.
Idiotic nerf based on issues with the Choppa.
It seems that Big Slash is now 360 degree, if this is the case its a nice buff.
Overall its seems as if its a patch for 2-handers. Some great individual buffs and fixes to the class but they lack a coherency that might be expected. Black Orcs have been devalued as tanks and using a sword and shield has taken a nerf.
Feedback from Black Orcs seems to be have been ignored and EU PTS feedback seems to be beyond a joke.
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