For those who have missed the announcements over on the SoE forums, Fan Faire registration is now open. This year's event will be held in Atlanta, GA on April 6th-8th, and looks to be (as usual) quite a fun time! This year there are also extra event upgrades if you bring 2 or more friends, or if 6 or more members of your guild pre-register. Further details can be found the Fan Faire Events site.

I always have a lot of fun, meet a lot of interesting people, and learn several things about my game addiction of choice at these. I hope to see some of you there!

February 22, 2006 - Sometimes it is the Little Things ...

{grins} If you participated in the spires building event this past weekend, by either donating sky essences or crafting,you will wish to check your in-game email. Everyone who contributed received a nice thank-you letter, and those who contributed 10 or more crafting combines (or 10 or more sky essences) also received a title. Definitely a nice little touch in my book. :)

February 21, 2006 - Kingdom of Sky!

Welcome one and all to Kingdom of Sky launch day! (As well as the release of LU20, and the launch of some servers with the new PvP ruleset.) It is an exciting and busy day for the devs, and for me. Sadly, a lot of what you get to do is ... hurry up and wait. It's a lot of great, great stuff incoming, but it is going to take time to get it all onto the servers, get the survers burped and behaving themselves and so on. Meanwhile, I'll be running around in several directions at once trying to spruce up some things around here, updating things, adding things and so on. If you're really, really bored, and tired wading through the high volume over at the SoE forums today, you can keep an eye on the temporary Mum Tracker to see what mischief I'm getting into during the downtime. {shrug}I know, not the most fascinating thing in the world, but it's better on everyone's sanity than joining the folks overloading the patcher every 5 minutes. {grins}

Edit 1: Live Update 20/KoS Expansion Patch Notes are now up on the site.

Edit 2: edit #2: I whipped up a wallpaper page with the EQTC wallpaper that Jeremy Waller of WTF Comics made for us, as well as some KoS and KoS PvP wallpaper from SoE. Enjoy!

Edit 3: Information on where to find the level 60-69 tradeskill books can be found here.

February 21, 2006 - About the Tradeskill Revamp - AGAIN

Again, since I see a lot of folks in-game asking the same question over and over and over again:

If the recipe is NOT one of the tier 1 or tier 2 recipes that were changed with LU19, and it is NOT a new tier 7 recipe, it has NOT changed yet.

February 20, 2006 - That Doggone Database!

As I'm sure many of you have noticed by now, our recipes and items database is woefully out of date.

There were grand plans to get everything caught up this fall, but not only did the energy and free time of our volunteers (and 'Mum) drop off, but there were some plans going on in the background regarding the site that made us want to wait on asking for more help.

The plans fell through, and when I finally admitted defeat, and was ready to ask for more help inputting all the waiting database submissions, the tradeskill revamp was announced. Since that revamp meant that every single recipe in our database would have to either be removed or redone, it didn't seem like a wise idea to add more recipes into the DB, just to have to redo them all right away.

Howeverrrrrr, a good chunk of the revamp is still in-progress, and there's no solid ETA, leaving us with a need to add in new recipes on top of the old stuff, keep the old stuff in place a bit longer, and make sure we've got a way to even semi-gracefully transition over to the revamped info when it arrives.

For now, the overloaded House Ogre (thank goodness he has strong shoulders!) has added a couple hidden fields so we can track internally what is old, what is new, and what is totally obsolete (so we can delete it somewhere down the line). At some point, when coding time and energy permit, we'll set up searches and displays and such so that you can easily tell what's new and what may be out of date. That may be a while coming, however, as there's just too much chaos in our lives. (Two sites, two expansions on the same day, one tradeskill revamp in-progress, and one RL job that seriously restricts available time on the coding side in this household makes for some interesting times!)

In the coming days, I'll start up a "Help Wanted" forum, so that folks can know where we need/want help. This will include helping fill in the blanks on item stats, missing recipes, and, most importantly, data entry. Be sure you read carefully when we post such requests, as it's not always as straightforward as you'd think on the surface, and we'd rather have a small handful of volunteers, than spend the time on setting up access for dozens of folks, only to find many of them rapidly overwhelmed and disappearing without a trace. (I promise, I'm not a slavedriver, and I worry when folks disappear without a trace, more than I fret about the state of the database. :P)

Anyway, please pardon the dust and bear with us. Once I get done spinning in circles, trying to decide which of 50 gajillion things to tackle next, I'll work on being coherent enough to properly ask for help (or at the least, coherent enough so that Zendaken and our other wonderful existing volunteers know what to ask for!)

February 18, 2006 - More Bits and Pieces about the Revamp

We're still getting some news here and there about tradeskill changes based on either the tradeskill revamp or the expansion. I am continuing to edit the Tradeskill Revamp article as we find out some of the more important details. (I've color-coded the additions since the original posting of the article in blue, so those of you who have read it already know what is new since then.)

February 16, 2006 - Live Event & Bonus Adventuring XP

In preparation for the launch of Kingdom of Sky, starting Friday (tomorrow) morning, and running through Monday night, bonus adventuring xp will be in effect. At the same time, there will be an ongoing live event to rebuild the spires that will transport folks to the new expansion, and crafters will be needed to aid in construction. Keep your eyes and ears open in-game and on the SoE forums for more details.

February 16, 2006 - More Information on the Tradeskill Revamp

Many folks are still confused about exactly what the tradeskill revamp will include, what we can expect as far as new items and recipes, etc. I've taken the time to do a bit of a brain dump on the new system as it stands right now. It's got some really important information in it, so you'll want to read it carefully. As I mentioned earlier today on our forums, only the tier 7 recipes are going in on Tuesday, using the new system. The other tiers will be revamped soonish, but we don't have an ETA. Once you read the article linked above, you'll see why they're not rushing the rest of it in along with the expansion. That's a lot of changes!

February 14, 2006 - More Home Goodies

To help pass the time in the week before the expansion hits, I've added a few more offerings to the main site. The first is a listing of the number of house vault slots by home location, which should help all the crafter-merchants out there who are thinking of expanding into a new home. The second is a temporary gallery page for the Tier 7 furniture offerings that we can look forward to when the expansion is launched. For those in a scavenger hunt kind of mood, you can mimic the folks on the EQTC site and see if you can figure out where I hid a link to the new EQTC wallpaper that Jeremy Waller of WTF Comics made up for us. (There's also a couple trading cards that he made for us scattered around the site.)

February 08, 2006 - KoS NDA Lifted (Plus Press Tour Info!)

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As of today, the NDA (non-disclosure agreement for beta testers of the upcoming Kingdom of Sky expansion has been lifted and they may freely discuss their beta experiences with folks.

At the same time, I've finally unburied enough to put together my press tour experiences from last week into a summary, complete with a few images. You can find my press tour writeup here.

February 02, 2006 - LU19 and New Character Progression

Today marks the release of Live Update 19 and the new character progression. There's a lot of very important information in those update notes, so be sure to read them carefully.

Since several folks have come to me directly, confused, here's some information on the tradeskill changes happening today. In support of the new character progression, which has you choose your final adventuring profession when you start, instead of at level 20, level 1-19 spells and combat arts needed to be changed or replaced. Instead of adding these under the old (current) tradeskill system, which is going to change on February 21, they were added directly in using the new tradeskill system. This means that all level 1-19 spells and combat arts (as well as a few other goodies such as a few new pieces of armor for classes that now get split into various armor types earlier in their profession) will be using raw materials to directly make their spells and combat arts. A new harvest is dropped onto tier 1 and tier 2 ore nodes for the fighter combat arts to support this chance. Again, the only stuff going to the new system today are Tier 1 and Tier 2 spells and combat arts, plus a few totally new recipes that are being added in support of the new character progression. Nothing else has been removed. You've still got 3 weeks before the rest of the announced changes go live.

Oh, and remember, use "N" to open your spellbook now! "B" will do the equivalent of a /togglebags. Yeah, I know, I can't think of a good mnemonic to help me remember why to use "N" either, but I'm sure it'll only take a couple dozen times before I'm used to it. {grins}

January 30, 2006 - Server Move Information

In addition to LU19 occurring on Thursday, there will be the opening of a free character transfer period for folks that want to change servers. This service will let you transfer your character to any server other than Antonia Bayle. Please read the Producer's Letter on EQ2Players for more information on this service, and why it, and some resulting server consolidation will soon be happening.

January 28, 2006 - LU19 Due February 2

Sony Online Entertainment MEDIA ALERT

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – January 27, 2006 – Sony Online Entertainment announced their preparations for the 19th update to EverQuest II, slated to launch on game servers February 2. This update will bring significant changes to the game, and is a precursor to the launch of the new Player vs. Player game servers, scheduled for late February.

The most noticeable addition to this update is the new Character Progression system. The gradual Archetype progression has been changed, and players will be able to choose their final class at the beginning of the game, rather than working their way up to level 20. This change means that the class system will be a more unique experience for players at low levels, and give players access to unique spells and abilities that set their class apart. Newly-created characters will also begin with new class-specific gear that will further differentiate players and make the world feel more diverse.

The game’s Tutorial section has also been dramatically changed. SOE would like to bid a fond farewell to Captain Varlos and the good ship Far Journey, as new players will now begin on one of two new islands, either the Outpost of the Overlord (evil) or the Queen’s Colony (good). The islands still serve as a “newbie” introduction to the game, but are much different from each other and contain a number of quests to get players started.

In addition to benefits for new players, one of the best dungeons in EQII, Solusek’s Eye, is receiving a content overhaul, with new high-level action and rewards for players in the late 40s – 50s level range. This awe-inspiring dungeon is now the home to new, powerful items, including fiery red equipment to match the dungeon’s theme. Additionally, the new quests create a foundation for the storyline that will develop in Kingdom of Sky, the next EQII expansion scheduled for February 21.

Additional changes in Live Update 19 include: changes to Mentoring to make it more fun for those helping their lower-level friends; the ability to send cross-faction mail (good characters can now send items and coin to evil characters and vice versa); a cleaner and clearer Adventure writs system; expanded vault storage space in some of the premium player housing; and tons of tweaks to the game’s user interface....

To read more of the above press release, including patch notes, please check out this article. One little niggly to note that's likely to catch us all, repeatedly, is the remapping of the recipe book key. Go ... read!

Not mentioned in the above article, but especially important to tradeskillers, is the fact that recipes for all level 1-19 spells, skills and combat arts are going to be changed to the new system of raws directly into final product, due to the changes to spells/arts of those levels from the player progression changes. Do not let this change catch you by surprise - you have been warned about this more than once now, and I'm unlikely to be the only one resisting (or failing to resist) the 'I told you so' for those unwilling to do a bit of reading now and then in a game that warns you up front that things will change. {grins}

January 18, 2006 - Furniture Gallery Done!

With a HUGE thank you to Elyana for all her hard work on the graphics, EQ2TC is pleased to announce the completion of the Furniture Gallery revamp. All images are now a standard size, resolution and so forth, and each has a linked larger image that uses a book for scale. This should make it the furniture selection easier on decorators and furniture shoppers, alike. Click on the Furniture tab to the right and take a look!

January 17, 2006 - Major Tradeskill Changes Incoming

There's been a bit of a hullaballoo due to some changes that hit the Test server without warning the other day. We've now got confirmation from Beghn that subcombines will be going away, potions/poisons may be changing a bit, and a few other things. There's a lot to parse and process, and a lot of questions, and if I try to paraphrase it, I'm likely to muck something up. So, I've a thread in our general tradeskills forum with the current quotes from Beghn regarding the issue (multiple posts in the same thread).

January 10, 2006 - Housing Options

While it is not directly related to tradeskills, many folks have asked about housing wall, floor, trim, and ceiling options. With some help from others, I have started a Housing Wall, Floor and Trim Options page. It still needs some images, and the ones that are there sill need work, but at least it is a start! (I am the first to admit I am in no way, shape or form graphically-inclined!)

January 06, 2006 - Small Change

Today's mini-patch included the following:

• Saliva of all types will no longer be usable as a substitution for liquid in tradeskill recipes. Apparently there have been too many cases of rabies

January 03, 2006 - Press Release - Kingdom of Sky

Sony Online Entertainment Inc. (SOE), a global leader in the online games industry, today announced that the second expansion for EverQuest® II, entitled Kingdom of Sky™, is schedule to be available at retail and for download on Feb. 21. The retail SKU of Kingdom of Sky a recommended price of $29.99 and will contain the full version of the base EverQuest II game, the new expansion and a special in-game item. The digital version will contain the new expansion for $26.99.

“Kingdom of Sky offers something for all of our EverQuest II players,” said Laura Naviaux, senior brand marketing manager, Sony Online Entertainment. “For the seasoned EQII player, Kingdom of Sky increases the amount of high level content in a world filled with intrigue and the potential destruction of Norrath by the evil dragon lords. The second expansion pack brings the excitement of dragon battles and is timed to coincide with the newly-added Player vs. Player (PvP) action.”

Kingdom of Sky pushes the boundaries of character development and adventure to new heights. An entirely new form of advancement introduces a structured Achievement system of skills and abilities to further specialize and individualize your character, while level caps for characters, artisans and guilds are all increased. Kingdom of Sky expands the arena challenges with four deadly new arena champions and two new arena zones. Ten new adventure zones, from lush jungles to temples of unimaginable splendor, 25 new enemies and troves full of new treasures all open up fresh game play and visual experiences within the online world of EverQuest II.

Player versus Player combat will “go live” in EverQuest II near the time of the launch of Kingdom of Sky, a highly anticipated addition to the game that will allow players to fight each other. PvP will be a part of the regular updates that take place within the game world, and will be available to all EQII players for no additional cost. PvP will feature good versus evil combat, pitting citizens of the two rival cities of Qeynos and Freeport against each other. Players will earn items, titles, fame and experience while engaged in combat with other online gamers around the globe. Combat will happen in the wild or within the gates of your opponent’s city. PvP will be activated on new servers so all players will be able to compete from the ground up.

About Kingdom of Sky

Features:

• Higher level advancement—now reach level 70 as an adventurer or artisan
• All-new Achievement system to further enhance and specialize your character’s abilities
• Guild advancement expanded to level 50
• Four new arena champions and two new arenas
• All new Heritage Quests allow players to gain amazingly powerful items, personal status, adventure experience and even a reward made famous in the original EverQuest
• Signature Quests which reward large experience bonuses, personal status, new items, and advance the lore of EverQuest II
• Over 30 new Collections expand upon one of the most popular features exclusive to EverQuest II. Find them all and earn all new rewards
• Challenging new zones, from floating islands to menacing dungeons
• 25 new enemies to fight
• Brand new pieces of armor, such as Profession Hats, Helmets and Pauldrons, will make your character look more distinct
• Over 30 new items to put in your player house
• All new player titles

December 20, 2005 - Happy Frostfell!

Ah, Frostfell. The winter (December/January) EQ II holiday that halflings (and others!) adore. The pitter-patter of little gnome feet as they try to dodge snowballs ... or is that as they try to avoid becoming snowballs? The heavenly smells of 'mum baking gingerbread men and making spiced eggnogg. Cities decorated in festive displays and much much more. There's even word of presents for everyone ... even the trolls! 'Mum likes prezzies! Keep your ears and eyes open for signs of the start of the holiday festivities, as it sounds like it will be a ton of fun!

You might also want to check out the most recent Producer's Letter from Gallenite, as it's chock-full of information on some big changes to the new player experience and the class selection process, as well as plans for PVP servers and more information on the Frostfell holiday. You can find the Producer's Letter here.

Today is also the arrival of Live Update #18, and it is crammed full of information (including the eagerly-awaited fixes to tier 6 food/drink durations, repaired broker searches for food/drink and so on.) For those who have a hard time reading the SOE forums from w*rk, but can reach our site, I've included a copy of the patch notes for you here.

From 'Mum and Ngreth, we wish you a safe and happy holiday season ... whatever your chosen holidays may be!

December 03, 2005 - T6 Food and Drink Durations

Beghn is working on adjusting (upwards) the durations on several tier 6 foods and drinks. You can find basic information in this post on our forums.

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