DAOC: Uthgard Revamp

[Weekapaug]

If you guys go Alb I would love to play a Cleric, or an Infiltrator if you already have clerics. I will probably play a stealther on the side, regardless.

If you go Hib I'd love to play a bard again. Or a Ranger if you have a bard. I would play one on the side anyway.

With any of the 3 realms I would be up for playing the non-hybrid tank, also, if the need is there.

[Weekapaug]

By the way, have they said anything about a launch ETA? Going to be travelling in early May so that might affect my availability.

[Ugrask]

I'd be down for this. By time I tried to play the original, they had instituted that get level 20/30 for free bullshit so I solo'd alone and got bored.

[Scrooge]

They haven't posted any ETAs yet unfortunately, I just hope it'll be sooner than P99 Velious release. This game is not so much fun to play solo, PvP side of it can be fun but PvE will get boring real quick like if you try to climb that hill on your own.

[Weekapaug]

Originally Posted by Scrooge [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

They haven't posted any ETAs yet unfortunately, I just hope it'll be sooner than P99 Velious release. This game is not so much fun to play solo, PvP side of it can be fun but PvE will get boring real quick like if you try to climb that hill on your own.

That's why I wish they would allow boxing for pve. RvR, no way, of course, but the pve is kind of game breaking. The /level 20 deal live showed that and that's when there were steady streams of new players when it was a relatively new game.

Every realm is made up of classes that are broken into several categories ..The couple that solo well, the couple that solo okay, the ones that can barely solo, and the ones that can't solo at all. Often classes that are vital for RvR fall into this latter category.

DAoC has a robust PLing mechanic....Any lower level(s) can group with any higher level(s) and as long as the higher levels are killing content their level the exp will bias towards the low levels. The opposite of EQ. It was designed that way intentionally to help friends catch up or PL by boxing so you could get friends and necessary classes into the realm war while also creating a challenge for the PLers. Easy enough to do, but a challenge because of BAF and not just handing it out on a plate. The classic example is levelling up a necro first then PLing a cleric or infiltrator for RvR. Or boxing a Hero with aBoard so you can play the bard in RvR.

I don't care what fixes and revamps they do. The PvE in DAoC is crazy boring as it is, much less trying to eek it out bleeding out of the eyeballs for 50 levels if you can't find groups. If they don't allow boxing in PvE so people who miss the levelling wave at launch have the option to PL pops will drop again and RvR at the top end and in the BGs will ultimately suffer.

[Scrooge]

Before they took it down for the revamp, Uthgard was the the most successful DAoC freeshard for many years, without any boxing needed whatsoever. Personally I can enjoy the PvE in DAoC because I know how to keep it interesting. for me and the group I'm with.

For example, instead of playing it safe by expin in pve-only zones, we'd venture out to the frontier or a battleground and XP there with the hope of finding some RvR action to boot. PvE and RvR don't have to be exclusive, so if you want to avoid being bored, then change the way you play to make the game more interesting.

The principle is very similar to EQ, in that if you just rush to the cap level and avoid most of the content on the way, you'll get bored/burned out rapidly. There's also a sense of community, thanks to the no-boxing rule, it makes finding/making groups much less of a hassle. Some people just don't know how to enjoy a game to it's fullest by trying to avoid the unavoidable.

[Weekapaug]

Originally Posted by Scrooge [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Before they took it down for the revamp, Uthgard was the the most successful DAoC freeshard for many years, without any boxing needed whatsoever. Personally I can enjoy the PvE in DAoC because I know how to keep it interesting. for me and the group I'm with.

For example, instead of playing it safe by expin in pve-only zones, we'd venture out to the frontier or a battleground and XP there with the hope of finding some RvR action to boot. PvE and RvR don't have to be exclusive, so if you want to avoid being bored, then change the way you play to make the game more interesting.

The principle is very similar to EQ, in that if you just rush to the cap level and avoid most of the content on the way, you'll get bored/burned out rapidly. There's also a sense of community, thanks to the no-boxing rule, it makes finding/making groups much less of a hassle. Some people just don't know how to enjoy a game to it's fullest by trying to avoid the unavoidable.

I tried playing there on at least 3 occasions over a two or three year period and always left because there were exactly ZERO people to play with at low levels and the classes I wanted to play fell into the "cant solo" category. So I have no idea what you mean when you say it promotes community. That works fantasticly here on P99 because EQ is a pve game and has the pops to support that. Uthgard, in my experience had nothing remotely like that and it wasn't like I wasn't looking. Great in theory, but is really pretty stupid in DAoC if you actually expect to have a healthy server. And that's why the PL mechanic was designed that way and why boxing was allowed on live. The fatal flaw there being buff bots in RvR, but that's an entirely separate issue.

PvE in that game is literally the same fight over and over for 50 levels. Its bad enough in groups. Forget about trying to eek it out solo. An opinion formed, I might add, after playing from release through every expansion era until about 5 or 6 years ago. It was always dull after you learned the game. The only way to make it remotely entertaining is copious amounts of weed and making sure you have a DVD player or something with Netflix on it in the room with you. Same with the tradeskills. In both cases, the vast majority of people simply endure both for getting to BGs and RvR which is what makes the game the game.

Honestly, as much as I love it, aside from early launch and for about a year after, DAoC has always been a niche game. Calling any server the most successful freeshard for that game is kind of ridiculous. They may not realize it but they aren't having to revamp just because of bugs and broken features. The very ruleset of the server hampers its growth because if you dont come with friends, chances are pretty good you won't advance. No bueno, imo.

[Nirgon]

There is no fuckin way I'm playing in another private 8v8 club server again.

No "zerg" means nothing less than perfectly composed/templated groups roll out.

Which means you sit around waiting for certain classes for hours because if you roll out with less you are BLACKLISTED by everyone for "feeding".

These 8v8 setups are basically where you organize times to meet up with other groups and trade RPs.

Ain't intredasted in no shit like that, esp considering the trade skill/xp grind.

[Scrooge]

One of the best things I've enjoyed about Uthgard every time I played, was being able to XP off RvR! This isn't about a little bit of xp here and there either, I've been able to gain several levels in a row just from RvR exclusively, not to mention a decent amount of change for tradeskills.

As far as me saying Uthgard is successful; I was referring to the fact that it's been up and stable, longer than any other DAoC freeshard, and maintained a rather large population for years. I've also met many great players during my annual tours, and made good friends with whom I still keep in touch to this day.

As for the "private 8v8 club server" comment, I know some people used to do that, but that's just lame imo. Have you ever gone out to RvR yourself, for more than 5min? If you think there are no zerg fights on Uthgard, you're largely mistaken. Have a look for yourself on YouTube, plenty of Uthgard videos on that topic.

Especially now that they wiped the server clean as part of the revamp, it'll be chaotic to say the least, for quite a long while. Anyway, my point is that there are many ways to play this game, sometimes you just have to find the right people to game with.

If you feel like trying the new Uthgard, you're welcome to join my group, whether you're playing for the first time or a veteran with existing bias', keep an open mind!

[Weekapaug]

Yeah they put RvR exp in later in the game along with battlegrounds for every level. It was really cool because it totally broke up the exp grind at low and mid levels.

Oddly, even the 1-5 bg could be really fun. The keeps started really basic then progressed in complexity with each bg. The 1-5 one was basicly a wall around a courtyard, no door, a couple of guards, and the npc you have to kill to take it. Sometimes for fun we would see if we could take it with a couple 3 people. With no opposition and using the purchaseable siege weapons (i forget what the arrow one is called) it was doable you just had to really be on your toes with guard repops.

Fun stuff. Has me itching to play.

Despite my nitpicking I really love daoc and I'm pretty stoked for the revamp. I'll probably be up for joining you depending on what realm you go for.