Classic Challenge: TBC beta underway

 There was no D&D Saturday this weekend as my zoom 3.5 campaign got cancelled for the second week in a row. Sadly, this meant my 4th level Barbarian had to remain in the inn and did not see any action. Too bad, RL gets in the way of gaming again as our DM was busy with some class related assignments and our other players were unavailable to take part in our virtual game session.

This was a bit disappointing also because I upgraded my stats to match our new 4th level status. According to the 3.5 rules set, after 6,000 xp, characters have progressed 4 levels and they gain some nifty perks over starting level characters including an improved base attack bonus of +4, Barbarians specifically gain the ability to rage twice per day, four additional skill points per level and at third level 

 a barbarian gains a +1 bonus on Reflex saves made to avoid traps and a +1 dodge bonus to AC against attacks made by traps. These bonuses rise by +1 every three barbarian levels thereafter.

Just for fun I thought I would compare the 3.5 Barbarian to its 4e counterpart since I have barely started to play the former but played the latter quite a bit a few years back during my 4e campaign in Spring, Texas.

Of course, this is like comparing apples and oranges since level progression is different in 4e with encounter powers added and being one at first level but two at level 4 for all characters. However, a character with over 6,000 xp would have been closer to 6th level than 4 in 4e. At 6,500 in 5e by comparison, that character would have been level 5 with a big jump to level six upcoming. 

Not counting any racial bonuses (according to the 5th edition PHB), a half orc, which is my race in the 3.5 zoom campaign would have their strength score increased by 2 and Con by 1just by virtue of the race, a 4th level Barbarian would get a proficiency bonus of +2, its rage would increase to 3 and rage damage would incur a +2 bonus, but that is not too much different than at level 1 with the exception of ability score improvements,

The Wow Classic TBC beta has arrived 

On the MMO front, barely five days ago Blizzard announced that the Burning Crusade beta is underway and access will be rolling out over the next few weeks. 

https://twitter.com/Warcraft/status/1362891146633043969?s=20

In an effort to enjoy the classic content before the new (old?) expansion drops, I left my wow classic sub open so that I can try a new challenge I have made up for myself. The retail game offers 20 free levels to try out the game before they lock down all the other game features. I have tried a few classes that way but currently I am trying to roll a character to try out every class and doing my best to level them up to at least 20 levels each. I would love to max them all, but that seems a bit ambitious to a casual gamer like myself.

Flintforge the Dwarf battles a Rockjaw Raider on his classic quest to 60

Taking a break from the grind in wow classic.

Everquest madness

Zergmaster the Druid halfling ventures out into the world of Norrath

 

Even though I have a subscription to Classic Wow, I haven't made as much progress these days leveling my characters because I jump around from one mmo to another and I guess I like the variety of playing different games.

It really is a shame that the recent RvR event in DAOC only lasted a couple of weeks as I can only dedicate a few hours a day to gaming during the busy work week and mostly game on the weekends like a lot of casual gamers and mmo enthusiasts.

The other night I watched an Everquest 1 video and got the urge to play EQ again so I downloaded and installed the client and decided to roll a halfling druid. This seems to be a fun class so far because I can heal myself with some n00b healing spells.

And in true n00bish fashion, I just discovered for the first time today that I can buy spells from NPCs, I thought maybe I just automatically gained them as I leveled up, and maybe I do, not sure, but you can definitely buy some along the way and I did.

While I was looking for guides and game tutorials online the other day I discovered this hilarious youtuber, Michael Shenanigan's. I was mesmerized about this crazy old mmo and the people who play them. These vids are highly recommended. 

Recovering the Lost Tome in DDO was a failure for soloing Barbarian but still immersive and fun

 

I really love Dungeons and Dragons Online so I spent some time in the Harbor of Eberron trying to level up my Barbarian. Unfortunately my first time attempting the quest I died in the dungeon after accomplishing to solo most of the objectives because the electric traps left me with only 1 hp and my intelligence (to my chagrin) was too low to activate the runes in the map. I mean look at this: you can't see the hp but it was down to 1 for the longest time with most of the tasks! So frustrating! 

But concurrently, I also loved finding out that my character's intelligence was too low to activate the runes in keeping with the 3.5 ruleset the mmo is based on.

I mean how cool is that?? 

That's my character sheet below which shows not only is my INT at 8 but there is a -1 penalty mod. This compares favorably with the pencil and paper version of the game which according to the 3.5 PHB shows a Barbarian's traits, feats and skills.

 After watching this walkthrough I realized what would make me succeed in the quest would be: Probably a hireling that's a rogue to disable the traps, but I am not sure if there are hirelings that are rogues, I have only previously employed clerics to heal me and one would have come in handy prior to attempting the dungeon, but as a n00b I neglected to purchase or to activate one before going in to do the instance. At level 3 would I have enough currency to purchase two hirelings a rogue to deal with  the various traps and a healer? Probably not, I am not even sure you are allowed to activate more than one at a time, but it sure would make soloing this quest easier. It's not a long or tough instance, especially if not done on elite, but it is if you are not sure what you are doing at first.

You can find walkthroughs to most of the Harbor and other quests in the game, but why would you ruin your fun making that a habit? I only looked it up this time for illustrative blog purposes but generally speaking I don't use add ons like "Questie" when I play wow and I don't really cheat and look at guides or maps when I play DDO because I think exploring the dungeons is way more fun and is a lot more immersive, even if you die pulling a n00bish move like the one I described earlier.

Next, I may try out a few other classes in DDO. For a 15 year old mmo, it's a rare gem which differentiates itself from other games of its ilk with it's voiced over instances and RPG mechanics. Check out Axel's DDO channel for the latest news and updates, he is one of the best Youtubers focused on this great mmo.

Review of D&D 3.5 Dungeon Master's Guide Chapter 1

 

D&D 3.5 Dungeon Master's Guide was created by Wizards of the Coast, published in the summer of 2003 based on the original D&D game created by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson

I know, I know, this is supposed to be a blog dedicated to mmos and the mmorpgs I and others regularly play, but I reason that Dungeons and Dragons is the table top precursor to not only mmos, but video games in general with so many of its mechanics having been coopeted or directly inspiring concepts such as health, experience and combat. So from time to time I will take a break from mmo adventuring and commentary and will discuss some of the intricacies of the other gaming hobbies I love.

Even though I dabbled with 1st Edition D&D as a teen and young adult, I didn't really go in depth into DMing or playing consistent game sessions until years later and I certainly wasn't around table top role play gaming in 2003 when D&D was once again rebooted. I thought it would be a good time to review the DM's Guide's first chapter here because that is the version of the game that I am currently playing with a few friends via zoom. It is also the edition rules set my favorite D&D mmo, Dungeons and Dragons Online is based on. 

According to the intro of the core book, the creators of the book and those involved with marketing the game to the masses wrote that they considered D&D to be a "living game, that constantly evolves as it is played." That explains why this version of the popular role playing game was quickly rebooted after only five years with 4E in 2008. 

The first chapter contains the usual definitions and explains what a DM's role is in running a campaign, information that was contained in previous editions, but there is an interesting section in chapter one on adjudicating which has some good insights. It goes on to address "house rules" and the ongoing discussion about what's better: A game master who is a stickler for the printed established system rules, or someone who is very flexible. My own thinking on this is that for a system like 3.5 which seems to be "rules" heavy or more complex than other editions, a balance between both approaches works best. But what does the manual have to say about it? In summary, I would say that the writers and game developers emphasize the concept of consistency when it comes to adjudicating the game session.

They wrote: "Consistency keeps players satisfied and gives them the feeling that they adventure in a stable predictable universe and not in some random nonsensical place subject only to the DM's whims." At this point if the reader allows me to digress a second from the review, I want to interject my two cents on the "edition wars" debate which is sure to rear itself again should WoTC ever decide to come up with D&D 6th edition. On that point, I think it is silly to try and compare one edition versus another, because they are all different, but also because I think something like 4E gets a lot of unnecessary hate since it was the version that differed most from the ones which came before it. A lot of people hated it. Personally, I always tell people if you have a good DM it doesn't really matter what system you play, creativity and participation will win out. I personally experienced this about six years ago when I played for a few months with a DM who incorporated some 2E material (notably from the Dragonlance setting popular at the time) into our 4E system based game. Everyone had a blast.

I skipped the section which provides a sample game session as I have participated in so many or watched some online, I am sure the reader has as well if you have read this far, so no need to say much about an illustrative game session excerpt. So what else is in the first chapter? What other kernels of knowledge and wisdom were imparted so long ago in this volume? Well there is quite a bit of ink devoted to good DM management, handling unbalanced PCs, pacing the game session and describing the action, changing the rules and reasons why this is or is not a good idea, and what to do if you as a DM make a mistake.

I think a fascinating portion of the first chapter deals with equipment needed for running the game. Some of course argue that there should not be any required and that a good imagination and "theater of the mind" versus a heavy emphasis on combat, grids, counters and miniatures is the way to go, but the authors make the point that these elements are not for everyone. The book includes a two-sided poster map containing a simple dungeon on one side and a 1-inch grid on the other.

The chapter ends with a discussion of determining outcomes, something which is of course always done in D&D by rolling dice. Surprisingly, and interesting, there is a discussion on whether a DM should occasionally cheat when rolling dice for players to determine the outcome of say a fight against a foe or monster. So should a DM cheat? I won't spoil it for you and will leave it to those interested to seek an answer to that question, the tome does say that if everyone in the party dies, that's bad for everyone "since the campaign might very well end there and then." 

In most of the games I have participated it in, it always seemed that the DM was well aware that his or her duty included running the obstacles and monsters the PCs encounter in game and they tend to be very unforgiving, actively trying to damage incapacitate or downright kill the PCs. I remember playing in a 5e campaign a few years back where I was given a "premade" character because I joined the session late and the party went up against a famous foe. I ended up dying and I just sat around the rest of the session watching the action and not really interacting. No cleric or healer even made the attempt to resurrect me or to involve me somehow. That is bad DMing in my opinion. Conversely, when I was younger and tried my hand at DMing 1st edition sessions with my cousin, brother and friends, I did not fully grasp the concept that part of my role was to throw obstacles and challenges that the PCs could not easily overcome. So my PCs ended up as superpowered beings with the best armor and weapons and loved it from that point of view, because they felt there was no challenge they could not easily best. With hindsight, also a good example of bad DMing. This first chapter also addresses these "mistakes."

World events are the greatest: Catch up in Caledonia for DAOC announced.

 

Dark Age of Camelot courtesy of u/macewindupe Reddit mmorpg forum

    I have to say that special events and world events in mmorpgs are some of the best events in all of gaming. They are so cool that they even made web series episodes about them to wit:

OK that's a classic but I digress. Two days ago, the DAOC Herald announced this weekend's upcoming Catch up in Caledonia event and I am so psyched for it! From the announcement: 

Q. What is Catch Up in Caledonia?

A. A10-day long event that will take place entirely in the Realm vs Realm-enabled Caledonia battleground zone.

Players will start at level 1 and rapidly progress to level 50 all while earning gear, master levels, champion levels, and realm ranks along the way!

By the event's end participants will be ready to competitively RvR in the Frontier. 

The event starts precisely at 4 PM EST / 9 PM GMT on Friday, March 5 and will end on Monday, March 15. 

I personally won't be able to participate on day one due to RL and work getting in the way of the fun, but I definitely want to roll a midgard toon bash on Albs and Hibs and join in some of the RvR fun this weekend and next. 

Here are some more of the event deets straight from the dev notes:

How does the event work?

For the first 3 days of the event, newly created level 1 characters will be automatically zoned into the Caledonia battleground where they will vie for control against the enemy realms

This will be the ONLY way to get inside the battleground zone. Once inside, characters can voluntarily leave but CANNOT return!

All monsters, center-keep guards, and siege weapons are removed for the event. The only way to progress is by defeating realm enemies in battle and turning in related quests.

The post goes on to say that the battleground will use a mix of leveling caps and new instances to maintain populations throughout the event. 

Players that start at the beginning of the event should be able to reach level 50, Champion level 15, Master level 10, and Realm Rank 5+ with the potential to earn much higher realm ranks. Characters will also be able to earn enough bounty points to not only obtain gear as they progress towards level 50 but also to use for end-game gear via Bountycrafting after reaching level 50!

So get ready to level up DAOC faithful, as far as world events go, this one sounds like an absolute blast. See you in the battleground!

Happy 15th birthday DDO

Hanging out in the Harbor where all the Trainers are in Stormreach in good old DDO

 Dungeons and Dragons Online, originally from Turbine and now owned and operated by Standing Stone Games has turned 15 years old this year and that blows my mind seeing as how I have been playing it on and off for the better part of all those years.

This is the game I usually turn to when I need a break from all the others, specifically the sometimes torturous grind of Classic wow. I figured this was a good time to return to the game because of the anniversary but also because I am in the middle of a 3.5 zoom D&D session with a few friends and this mmorpg is the closest I can find to playing D&D outside of maybe Neverwinter, but DDO is a better game in my opinion than Neverwinter starting with its setting and its ties to the 3.5 rules set.

The Barbarian class from the D&D PHB 3.5 circa 2003.

I am playing a half orc barbarian in the zoom session so it seems appropriate that I am playing one in this mmo as well and it is a ton of fun. You can solo a lot of the dungeons with only a hireling (which technically is not really soloing, especially if you have a healer like a cleric along so that you can replenish hp and believe me, that makes a world of difference at higher levels.)

For those of you who have never played this great game but who are fans of high quality and stunning graphics, a word to the wise: You aren't going to like DDO if that is what you are looking for, I mean it's not realistic to do so when we are talking about a 15 year old game, but what you will find is a lot of atmosphere with the incredibly fun dungeons which are voice acted and very diverse depending what part of Stormreach you are exploring.

It was a bold (some would say even perhaps controversial) move for Turbine to have chosen the Eberron Campaign setting instead of the more well known D&D settings for the online game when the game released back in 2006, but I for one am glad they did because had they not, I would not have been as familiar with the steampunk and magic aesthetic associated with this setting. Expansions of the game over the years have brought with it the other settings, so you can always port out to The Forgotten Realms and even Ravenloft if you are high enough level to do so. Personally, I have not dabbled in DDO consistently so I have not really done the other settings, but that is also something to look forward to in the weeks and moths to come.

During the anniversary players can redeem items from the DDO store including a 15th anniversary cosmetic cloak and also partake of the anniversary event. Every year for the game's anniversary, players get the chance to fight with a member of the dev team in House Phiarlan. The anniversary event runs through March 31st. 

Players have reported on the game's official forums that this year's items are of higher quality than in previous years, which makes sense given the fact this is a landmark for DDO. Confessions of  Geek mom has a really great personal anecdote from a dedicated player detailing her experiences with a game and it made me so happy to read it because that is one of the best parts of playing mmos imo, the social and community aspect of sharing a virtual experience. 2020 was a terrible year for obvious reasons but at least people were able to share some love through their online and mmo communities. DDO is no different in this respect. 

So happy birthday DDO. I am glad this game is still around today. 

 

DDO is turning 15 and they give the players the gifts!