Server Merge and Server Launch September 8 (plus a progression server in the future)

From SOE General Dev Updates:

Mayong Server Merge Next Week - (Tunare Server) - Next Wednesday, 9/8/10 during our game update, we will be merging the Mayong Server into the Tunare Server. The Tunare Server will likely be down longer than the other servers to finish the merge. More information will follow on the exact time frames.

New Server Launching Next Week - We will be launching a brand new server with our Game Update on Wednesday 9/8/10. Trakanon is the name chosen by you in our poll results. Character Transfers will not be permitted to Trakanon but we may allow it some day in the future.

Progression Server - A progression server has been asked to be launched for quite some time. When we did the polls last year, the Mayong 51/50 server was chosen as the front runner and a progression server was chosen as a runner-up. The Mayong launched and had a great turnout but we are ready to turn a new page with that server and move onto the next best thing. After popular demand and much feedback by you, we believe a time-locked progression server is the best one to launch next. So we're discussing the best time to launch and best roll out plan to unlock each expansion so that content is maximized and accomplished and balanced so that you are not rushed nor left behind.

Scheduling for a Progression Server - We are currently all hands into development on our House of Thule expansion (launching October 12, 2010) and we are giving it as much attention as needed to ensure a great launch. Focusing on a progression server launch will have to come after the House of Thule, where as a schedule will be determined at that time. We have a time frame in our minds that makes sense to us and with our schedule but we will hold off on announcing that time frame until after a successful expansion release.

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Patch Scheduled September 8, 2010

While not officially announced, per se, it appears there will be a patch on this date.

Next Wednesday, 9/8/10 during our game update...

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Labor Day Bonus XP Weekend

Kiara the EverQuest Community Manager has posted that there will be a holiday experience bonus. How much the bonus will be is still to be announced:

YES!

Official announcement coming soon.

In the meantime the info will be:

September 2nd at noon (PDT) until September 9 at 10am PDT.

UPDATE: It has been announced that it will be a 50% bonus:

Experience Weekend Week - In honor of the Labor Day holiday 3-day-weekend, this Thursday we will be turning up the experience gain and it will run through the following Wednesday Night. (yes, we've heard many comments that not all players are available on the weekend - so cheers to you and to those that will be playing this weekend!) The experience increase will be turned on before noon (PT) on Thursday, 9/2/10 and will be turned off on Thursday 9/9/10 morning no later than 10:00am. The experience increase will be 50% during this time frame!

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Patch Scheduled August 18, 2010

From the EverQuest Players Network Status page:

All EverQuest Live Servers (except Al'Kabor) will be brought down at 2:00 am PDT (10:00 am UTC) on Wednesday, August 18, 2010 for an update. Estimated downtime is 6 hours.

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20% Underfoot Experience Bonus to End August 18

I seem to have missed the announcement on the bonus, so here it is with the date on when it ends.

Greetings Norrathians!

We're excited to announce that from July 28 through August 18, we're going to give you a 20% boost to experience in all the Underfoot zones.

If you've been wanting to make that final push to level 85, but just haven't had the time or felt like your experience bar was crawling, now is the perfect time to show the Underfoot who's boss!

Perhaps you are at the level cap, but have some friends who are lagging behind. This is perfect time to help them catch up to you and experience all that Underfoot has to offer.

The Underfoot zones are:

* Arthicrex
* Brell’s Rest
* Brell’s Arena
* Brell's Temple
* The Convorteum
* The Cooling Chamber
* The Foundation
* Fungal Forest
* Kernagir, the Shining City
* Lichen Creep
* Pellucid Grotto
* The Underquarry
* Volska's Husk

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"Hardcore" Versions of Dungeons Coming in August and September

From this post on the SOE forums:

Greetings Norrathians!

We are proud to bring you, back by popular demand, the buffed up versions of your favorite dungeons!

From August 18 through September 6 - Cazic and Blackburrow

From September 1 through September 13 - Lower Guk and Unrest

- Kiara, EQ Community Manager

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Giants, Giants, Giants! Is Back (by mistake)

With little fanfare, the Giants, Giants, Giants! quest is back in the game. Get it, as before, from Tzudani, Emissary of Veeshan, who stands in the Plane of Knowledge near the Guild Lobby.

No word yet on how long it will be around, so get it while you can.

For more information on this quest, visit the Giants, Giants, Giants! page at Fanra's EverQuest Wiki.

UPDATE: It seems that the quest was not supposed to be back, it is a bug. Here is the official word:

This event is NOT supposed to be up. Unfortunately I probably can't kill it before the weekend (it's not generally a good idea to make a last minute change on a Friday...).

If you do the event, we take no responsibility for the problems it might cause with the rewards. Do it at your own risk.

- Absor, EQ Developer

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Old Man McKenzie to Change in September

From this SOE forums post:

We have decided not to give Old Man McKenzie a sabbatical, but changes will be coming to what he does.

The major issue we have is that he gives a HUGE amount of reward, both in experience and items for absolutely zero risk except possibly a small amount of wasted time if you somehow manage to fail.

A smaller issue is people not learning how to play their own class, but this is only a small issue in our opinion, and probably not widely prevalent. We are sure it happens sometimes, but it is not the majority of the cases.

So, in the September patch, we will remove ALL experience rewards from the missions that Old Man McKenzie offers. We may bring the experience back in a modified form in the future, including requiring that you actually participate to gain the experience, but that particular point is still under discussion.

This will leave the monster missions as no risk way of gaining high value items. We continue to have no plans to raise that amount of brews given. If you think the item is valuable enough, then you will need to repeat the mission enough times to get the item. We still consider it too easy to get these items, even with the requirement to grind for a while to get some of them.

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Next Expansion Officially Announced

From EverQuest News:
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EverQuest® House of Thule™ is the seventeenth expansion of the groundbreaking EverQuest franchise. Now in its unprecedented twelfth year, EverQuest continues to add immersive gameplay, captivating storytelling and exciting worlds to its legacy, now set in a never-before-seen dreamland full of mystery and adventure. House of Thule offers an expansion rich in content and packed with game-changing features including a level cap increase and the addition of player housing, which new players, veterans and MMO fans will relish.

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SOE is now accepting Beta sign ups for House of Thule.
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From EverQuest News:
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We are now accepting sign-ups for the EverQuest® House of Thule™ expansion beta. The beta period is expected to begin on Monday, August 9, 2010.

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Go here for more information.
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UPDATE:  More information on  House of Thule can be found at Fanra's EverQuest Wiki's House of Thule page.
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