Patch Scheduled Wednesday April 24, 2013

From the SOE forum:

All EverQuest Live Servers will be brought offline on Wednesday, April 24, 2013 at 5:00 am US Pacific*. The servers are estimated to be unavailable for approximately 3 hours. Keep an eye on the EverQuest website and the forums for status updates and for news if additional downtime is needed.

*Time Zone Converter

Patch Scheduled April 17, 2013

From the SOE forum:

All EverQuest Live Servers will be brought offline on Wednesday, April 17, 2013 at 3:00 am US Pacific* for the Shadow of Fear Game Update. The servers are estimated to be unavailable for approximately 5 hours. Keep an eye on the EverQuest website and the forums for status updates and for news if additional downtime is needed.

*Time Zone Converter

EverQuest Forum Downtime: Thursday, April 11, 2013

From the SOE EQ Forum:

We will be doing some work on the EverQuest forums on Thursday, April 11, 2013. The forums will be inaccessible from 12:00 pm (Noon) to 4:00 pm PDT*. We apologize for the inconvenience, and look forward to chatting with you again once the forums are back up and running!

During the forum downtime, you can find news and updates on our website, Facebook, and Twitter.

*Convert to local time

Double Station Cash - March 29 to March 31

From the SOE forum:

Starting tomorrow, get Double Station Cash between March 29th-31st when you buy Station Cash or redeem an SOE Pre-Paid Station Cash card.*

Stock up on Pre-Paid Station Cash cards now to take advantage of this special offer!
Be on the lookout for special deals on the Marketplace, too!

*Offer valid from 12:01 AM PDT March 29, 2013 to 11:59PM PDT March 31, 2013. Double Station Cash offer excludes purchases made via SMS.

Game Patch Wednesday, March 27, 2013

From EQ Community News:

Server Downtime – Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Posted On 03/26/2013

All EverQuest Live Servers will be brought offline on Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 6:00 am US Pacific* for a Game Update. The servers are estimated to be unavailable for approximately 2 hours. Keep an eye on the EverQuest website and the forums for status updates and for news if additional downtime is needed.

*Time Zone Converter

Shadow of Fear Beta Signups Open

From the SOE EQ forum:

If you did not participate in the Rain of Fear Beta but you would like to help us test the Shadow of Fear Game Update, please sign up for Beta using this link: https://account.station.sony.com/authenticated/beta/betaRegistration.action?betaId=17&theme=eq

Once you sign up, we'll try and get your account flagged as quickly as possible.

Thank you and see you in game!

Shadow of Fear Beta Opens

The Shadow of Fear Beta has begun.  Also, Piestro confirms that the name is "Shadow" of Fear and not "Shadows" of Fear.

Hey folks,

The EverQuest Game Update: Shadow of Fear Beta is now live! Currently everyone flagged for the Rain of Fear Beta has been allowed access to the Shadow of Fear Beta and Beta Forums. We will be opening up signups for the Beta for those who are interested sometime in the fairly near future.

This Beta is different in several ways from our recent Betas, so I wanted to call these changes out specifically.

• Universal Chat is still active
• There is no NDA on the Shadow of Fear Beta

While there is no NDA for the Beta, we do ask that you still limit discussion of Beta to the Beta forums. Our developers are going to be very active in reading feedback in those forums specifically; if you post feedback elsewhere, it will be missed. Similarly, discussing Beta contents with people who aren’t in Beta isn’t very productive. If you want to discuss Beta, it’s much better to get involved in the Beta yourself. Once our signups are open we will be very quick in handing out invites, so don’t worry!

For those of you who need to download the Beta Client, it is available here. Old Man Thorren in the Plane of Knowledge is happy to help you journey to the new zones.

Thanks, and I’ll be seeing a lot of you in Beta!

Piestro
Community Relations Manager - EverQuest

Special 14th Anniversary Stuff Beginning Now

From the EQ forum:

• From March 8, 2013 to March 17, 2013 Rare Mobs and Faction Gains/Losses will be dramatically increased. Grind faction and get loot!
• Starting March 11, 2013 and going till March 17, 2013 Lockout Timers will be reduced by 30%. Do more of what you want, when you want!
• From March 15, 2013 through March 17, 2013 it’s Double XP time! Whether it’s getting your main some levels or AA, or leveling up a new alt, everyone loves Double XP!
• Starting on March 13, 2013 and lasting until April 26, 2013, all our previous Anniversary Quests and content will be turned on. Don't miss any of these oldies but goodies!
• Starting on March 13, 2013 and lasting until May 26, 2013, all our new Anniversary Quests and content will be turned on. This party isn’t just going all night – it’s going for two months!

Virtual Blood Drive in Celebration of Wars Sheol

From EQ Resource:

In Everquest and Everquest II he played a dark elf warrior named Wars Sheol, but in real life he battled cancer his whole life.

Wars was born with Xeroderma PigmentosumPigmentosum (XP)(Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XP) http://www.xps.org/), a rare form of skin cancer. Later, he was also diagnosed with Accute Myelogenous Leukemia (http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/medicalpubs/diseasemanagement/hematology-oncology/acute-myelogenous-leukemia).

He beat the odds and lived longer than the world of medicine expected. As a child he participated in a research project that has helped children born with cancer have better lives. He fought hard against the diseases that stalked him. But Wars' fight ended on 2/9/2013.

His in game greeting was always "WARS!!" He was willing to help other players do a raid, camp a mob, get experience points, or farm for trade skill ingredients. His home in EQ was a castle and was featured in the Norrathian Home Show.

He did not just play EQ and EQII - he was involved in making the game better; volunteering to serve on the Community Round Table and he helped beta test several expansions. At a Fan Fair, he was part of a group that suggested explaining Fippy Darkpaw's suicidal run.

Always soft spoken but outgoing, he met everyone as a friend. He also loved pictures - he really enjoyed posing with the Firiona Vie models and all of his friends.

When the doctors told him that he only had weeks to live, in typical Wars fashion, he looked for a way to reach out and help others. Having had a lifetime of transfusions, he knew that a pint of blood could make life better. In lieu of flowers, he asked his friends and family to donate blood at the American Red Cross. Those of us who are his friends are calling on the gaming community to join the drive.

If giving at the American Red Cross, please ask the American Red Cross for a card and write that you are giving for "EQ-WARS!". Those cards will be directed to his family. If you prefer to donate directly to a local community blood bank or cancer center, that is good too. No matter the venue, if you donate blood in Wars' honor, please send an email to eqwarsblooddrive@gmail.com with the state in which you donated. His family will be kept informed about the number donations reported to the email address.

Feel free to spread the word about this virtual blood drive to your guild and any gamer friends. Let's make the expression "going viral" mean something good!

In game he chose to be warrior; in real life he showed grace, courage and nobility while facing a really big boss mob. Whether you personally played with Wars, met him at a Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) gathering, or just want to help, please consider donating blood to help us build a positive living legacy in honor and celebration of a gentle giant who called himself WARS!!

Thank you,
Adisson - EQ, Xegony Crystilla, EQ, Erollisi Marr
Cleranee EQ Xegony Dulcolax, EQ, Xegony
Guilian Rumrunner, EQ, Xegony In Via Damnum Guild, EQ Xegony
Jmorgana EQ Xegony Jethal Silverwing, EQ II
Kalbit EQ Xegony Larksong, EQ, Xegony
Maddoctor EQ Xegony Majandra, EQ, Xegony
Moltok, EQ, Xegony Mrizx, EQ, Xegony
Muffinstalker, EQ, Xegony Raeril, EQ, Xegony
Senwars, EQ, Xegony Teodor Aurora, EQ, Xegony
Tekilla, EQ, Xegony Wolana Phoenixfyre, Xegony
Xensothertoon on Xegony Zanzemara Aurora, EQ, Xegony
Zoraab, EQ, Xegony

14th Anniversary and Shadows of Fear Announced

SOE has announced plans for the 14th Anniversary celebration and for part two of RoF: "Shadows of Fear".

The 14th Anniversary will begin March 16 and will bring back all the old anniversary quests and have new ones.  Included will be some 2012 SOE Live player created quests.

Also, the Epic Weapon Ornamentation quests will finally go live for the anniversary.  If you have an epic weapon, you can do quests to get an ornamentation to make your current weapon look like your epic.

We knew that there were pieces missing from Rain of Fear.  Well, they are scheduled to arrive in April and are entitled "Shadows of Fear".  It will be free for all those who purchased Rain of Fear.

Read more about this and other news in the forum post by EQ Producer Thom Terrazas.

Signs of More RoF Content To Come...

In a thread on the SOE forum, player Axxius goes over the signs that more Rain of Fear content (tiers 3 and maybe 4) are on the way:

The facts:

1. RoF was released Nov 28. There were 3 portals in SL with nothing but the base, and the NPCs at them saying that they were building them. The big shard in the middle was askew and not really big.
2. Exactly 30 days later, on Dec 28, the 3 portals became 1/3 built, the NPCs near them started giving hints about their destinations, the big shard became bigger and vertical, and a new NPC appeared near it talking about the Heart of Fear.
3. Exactly 30 days later, on Jan 27, the 3 portals became 2/3 built and gained emotes for trying to enter them, the big shard became even bigger and also gained an emote for clicking on its supports.
4. Feb 26 is 30 days after Jan 27. (what? it IS a fact! )
5. In the podcast after the release of RoF SOE producer mentioned that there will be additional content releases between the expansions.
6. RoF T2 contents ends in a mystery: an entity named Lupex steals the fear shard that was used by King Xorbb and disappears. The lore text suggests that we will soon meet Lupex again. King Xorbb doesn't have any of the endboss attributes, that whole ordeal was just a story of 2 halfings getting into something much bigger than they intended. The main storyline of the expansion (assembling the crystallized essence of Fear to bring back Cazic-Thule) remains unresolved.
7. The main artwork for RoF depicts Terris Thule, Morell Thule, Brell and Tunare fighting against an army of what appears to be Alarans in a place that looks similar to Plane of Fear. None of the content of the T1 or T2 zones relates to that in any way. None of those 4 gods appear in T1 or T2.
8. Multiple SOE devs mentioned on twitter/facebook that they are working on new zones. When asked about letting players test it, the answer was 'we'll consider it'.
9. EQ client supports 5 new zones that are not patched in yet (1 of them was patched to Beta near the end of RoF beta testing): Chelsith Reborn, Plane of Shadow, Plane of Mischief (new), The Heart of Fear, and Burned Woods. The first 4 of them are perfect match for the destinations suggested by the NPCs at the incomplete portals and the big shard.
10. Shard's Landing uses Terris Thule, Shissar Emperor and some other models that currently do not spawn there.
11. New focuses higher than T2 and new spells with names and descriptions suggesting new boss fights have been added in the last patch.

The speculation:

1. New content is most definitely coming.
2. There will be tier(s) higher than T2.
3. Portals to at least 3 new zones should open on Feb 26.

SOE declined to comment at this time.  They often don't like to announce things until they are "ready".

I do consider it highly unlikely the new zones will open on February 26. I expect it to be March at the very earliest and more likely May (March and April are usually busy with anniversary stuff).

Berserker Usable RoF 2Handers To Get Boost

From Chandrok, EQ Developer, on the SOE forum:

All 2h weapons that are usable by berserkers will be retuned to the correct ratios for their tiers. Obviously T2 weapons will be better than tier 1. Here's a list of the weapons that are changing. Although some of these are slower than a berserker would want to use, these will all be adjusted up.

Meljeldin, Bane of Giants
The Frozen's Grudge
Kreztik's Blistering Judgment
Strength of Valor
Dragoncold Lance
Shadeblade
Frosthewn Greathammer
Unspoken Deliverance
Draining Ire of the Glen Liege
Weight of Duty
Enkindling Pike

Hero's Forge To Go On A Diet

So far only seen on the EQ Producer's Twitter account, news that at least some of the Hero's Forge armor graphics will someday not look like you are wearing five sets of underwear underneath them.

 From Thom Terrazas' Twitter account:

Human female, Current plate - Future plate

Current chain - Future chain

Iksar female: Current plate - Future plate

"Splash" Spells Broken, Enkindling Pike Nerf Intended, Collection Spawns Look Different

All "splash" type spells appear to be broken.  From a post by Elidroth, EQ Developer, on the SOE forum:

It's actually looking like all free-target spells aren't working. We're looking into it.

The WAR PAL RNG SHD BER weapon Enkindling Pike was nerfed.  The damage was changed from 265 to 257.  From a post by Chandrok, EQ Developer, on the SOE forum:

This was an intentional change that happened at the same time as the change to Meljeldin, Bane of Giants. It was my error that this was not mentioned in the patch notes.

So far the February 13 patch seems to have fixed most Collection items.  The spawn points of them now look different:

Some Collection items are still bugged.  This thread on the SOE forum covers most of the issues, if you don't mind searching through a (currently) 12 page thread.

Patch Scheduled Wednesday, February 13, 2013

From the SOE forum:

All EverQuest Live Servers will be brought offline on Wednesday, February 13, 2013 at 4:00 am US Pacific* for a Game Update. The servers are estimated to be unavailable for approximately 4 hours. Keep an eye on the EverQuest website and the forums for status updates and for news if additional downtime is needed.

*Time Zone Converter

Server Downtime: Thursday, January 17, 2013

From the SOE EQ forum:

Server Downtime - Thursday, January 17, 2013

All EverQuest Live Servers will be brought offline on Thursday, January 17, 2013 at 7:00 am US Pacific* for a hot fix to fix instability related to commerce servers. The servers are estimated to be unavailable for approximately 2-3 hours. Keep an eye on the EverQuest website and the forums for status updates and for news if additional downtime is needed.

*Time Zone Converter

Art Imitates Art?

I was going to call this Life Imitates Art, but this isn't real life .

I'm wondering if someone at SOE is also a fan of The Noob comic or they just got the idea independently.

Because here is Fred the Dread from The Noob:


and here is what I discovered in today's patch:


Coincidence? Either way, it looks like I've spoiled the surprise coming soon. I like the hats a lot. I just hope they also don't hide your eyes like too many EQ hats do for some strange reason.

Patch Scheduled Wednesday, January 16, 2013

From SOE EverQuest Community News:

Server Downtime – Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Posted On 01/15/2013

All EverQuest Live Servers will be brought offline on Wednesday, January 16, 2013 at 4:00 am US Pacific* for a Game Update. The servers are estimated to be unavailable for approximately 4 hours. Keep an eye on the EverQuest website and the forums for status updates and for news if additional downtime is needed.

*Time Zone Converter

Bugs and Fixes To Come

Several bugs have been reported over the past few weeks and SOE is working on fixing them.  In addition, some changes are coming to the tracking skill (no, druids and bards still won't get to sort, the Devs think a basic UI function is a "class skill").

Collection achievements have been giving far less experience than designed:

You will receive approximately 20% of the XP that would be necessary for the level each collection is intended for, as well as another 20% for completion of the entire zone. Some collections also come attached with items and titles!

Collecting the Collection items is often impossible.

I totally understand how frustrating it is to have the items slip right through your fingers and disappear into nothingness right when you think you've got it. This is the most critical issue for Collections, and we're working to get to the root of what's causing this bug ASAP.

Ancient Wurm Hide Robe item has incorrect focus.

This was an error with the focus. It will be fixed in a future patch. 

 

 Pets and Mercs will be able to be hidden from tracking results sometime in the future.

Druid / Shaman Paralytic Spores AA Rank 2 is broken.  If you have Rank 1, it is recommended that you do not buy Rank 2 until it can be fixed.

<@Elidroth> Paralytic Spores is on my list to fix already

The Charm of the Crystal Circle, reward for doing the Shard Experiences task, is bugged.

Yes, the charm is broken. It was looking at quests unstead [sic] of faction. It will be fixed next patch.

Double XP Extended on Bertox Server Until Midnight January 2

From the SOE forum:

Double Experience has been extended on the Bertox server until 11:59 PM on January 2nd, 2013.

Enjoy!