Sorry that the Furious Pacifist has been so quiet - she ended up with blood on her hands and so we had to have a virtual jumping off a cliff ceremony. Turns out you just can’t trust gnomes…

Paxmar wrote:

It was wonderful to arrive back in Baubbleshire after my time away. Neezer Grund greeted me before I’d properly made it off the boat and just about talked my ear off! I promised I’d come back to him and went straight over to the Deductive Directory to see if they had any work. There were plenty of jobs but nothing that I was qualified to do. I was beginning to despair again.

That’s when I made a wonderful new friend, Talwith Darkcloud was his name. He saw that I was at a loss and offered to help me out. I told him I wasn’t afraid of hard work but I didn’t know how to get started. He said they were in serious need of more skilled labor in Baubbleshire and that if I was willing to learn a trade, he’s happily teach me. He gave me some basic tools and a bag to put them in and immediately put me to work making simple things.

What a relief to be back in a sensible place [More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

I was in a group with a transmuter and so we handed all the no-drop loot to him and then used a round-robin system for the result. One person handed the powder she received back to the transmuter, saying she didn’t want the hassle. When I asked, she told me that she didn’t really understand adornments and so the item would be wasted on her and she didn’t like to take it from the group just to sell.

If you could imagine doing that, then this guide is for you. Otherwise, skip straight to our definitive list of adornments. Sixes has made this table showing all the adornments and their ingredients. And because gnomes are clever, it’s got automagical sorting so you can list them by type or stat or tier or quality. Look, there’s more! Place your mouse over the tier of the item you want and a pop-up window will appear with a shopping list. This is the most second-most wonderful thing Sixes has done all month.

Meanwhile, let’s look at the basics you need to understand to get adornments for your character. [More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

I’ll be traipsing around real-world bogs this week but there’s plenty to keep you occupied if you are short of reading material!

Turbine finally announced their big secret: the Mines of Moria expansion. We can look forward to two new classes, level cap raised to 60 and new advancements for crafters. Personally, I’m just looking forward to fishing in Lothlorien.

Meanwhile on World IV, [More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

Almost upon us is patch 2.4 for World of Warcraft, the last major patch before the Rise of the Lich King expansion and, thus, the conclusion to the
Burning Crusade storyline.

It’s a huge patch in terms of added value and there’s a patch trailer available (see it on YouTube or download the HD Version for PC and MAC). A lot of the test realm changes for the patch have been with balancing aspects for the classes which aren’t currently finalised and therefore not discussed here. So what do we know is coming with 2.4 ?

• A new area to explore - Sunwell Isle
• Increase in daily quests
• New 5 man instance
• New raid instance
• Sunwell Isle

Aspects of the Sunwell Isle remind us of the Opening of Ahn’Qiraj, in that it’s the combined effort of the playerbase to open things up. Repeatable quests will slowly change the quest hub from a small camp to a town, opening up vendors and additional quest NPCs.

Increase in Daily Quests

At the moment daily quests are limited to 10 per day. With 2.4 this increases to 25 so all your current quests can be dailies if you so wish.

New 5 Man Instance

The Magister’s Terrace is the new 5 man instance with the usual assortment of trash mobs to kill, unique boss fights and new loot. The end boss of the instance is Kael’Thas. Yes, the boss you kill as a raid in The Eye is now available in a post-defeat weakened state for a 5-man group to kill. Poor chap gets no rest!

New Raid instance

Sunwell Plateau is the raid instance and much like the Isle itself, the instance is slowly unlocked as more players complete the trials within. Killing the bosses within gains an item called the Essence of the Immortals which is handed in to the mages of the Sunwell Isle to help destroy the barriers, giving players access to the inner areas of the plateau and the
fight against Kil’jaeden himself.

The Fury of the Sunwell patch is shaping up to be be a great amount of extra content for both the casual and hardcore playerbase. Parts of the patch are downloading in the background now so it’s hopefully just a week or two until we get the full patch.

Posted by Talthinar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

All you need to know about Kunark Faction, collected in one handy-dandy place. Bookmark this page!

“For many years the Iksar wandered Kunark, seeking shelter and food. They began to form small packs, which formed larger tribes. After six decades, these tribes numbered five - the Kunzar, the Obulus, the Jarsath, the Kylong and the Nathsar. Feuds and skirmishes between the five tribes tore much of Kunark apart. Some shaman of the Iksar tapped into the powers of their original master, the god Cazic Thule, and their power grew. Others began delving into the darker arts left behind by the Shissar and others practiced hand to hand combat as an art.”

The Rise of Kunark expansion includes 4 zones with progressively higher NPCs and quest lines:

• Kylong Plains
• Fens of Nathsar
• Kunzar Jungle
• Jarsath Wastes

Traveling in Kunark

Travel in Kunark is primarily based on Sokokar posts. In order to use these posts, you must first do a set of quests which will reward you with a sokokar that will allow you to use the posts. If you are under level 65 in adventure levels [More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

Finally, a full list of adornments, including the transmuting ingredients, the amounts needed per recipe and a full list of the adornments and their effects.

If you’ve been putting off getting your adornments then here’s your chance to make sure your character has the best of everything.

The Definitive List of Adornments

If you feel a bit confused about adornments and how to get them, don’t worry. We have a straight-forward guide for adorning your characters equipment coming in the next few days which, in conjunction with the list of adornments, will make it simple to upgrade your gear.

If you want to make sure not to miss the guide, subscribe to the feed and get this and other useful guides in your inbox.

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

Starcraft fans must watch this Korean comedian imitating the game. No, I don’t speak Korean but it’s hysterical never-the-less.

In an attempt to lighten up from all the EQ2flames madness, I thought I’d share Kaladryn’s great post on their forums:
Why I Should Win the Gigglegibber Lottery

Unfortunately, this got hidden away on the server forums and so (in my opinion) never got the attention that it should have.

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

You’ve probably been quite concerned about the sudden silence - and rightly so! I’ve had the most lovely time horrendous experience since I’ve last updated my blog.

I was abducted by an evil gnome! Honestly! He tied me up and declared he was going to hold me for ransom. It didn’t take him long to discover that there was no one with enough platinum in my family to make it worth his while. This was no simple-minded gnome who would give up easily, however. He cackled as he told me that he had a plan.

[More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

I made a pacifist character, Paxmar. I posted an introduction while I considered how to format this. I think what I’m going to do it put Paxmar’s journal in a text box, like so:

Paxmar wrote:

I decided that I am going to the Queen’s Colony as my father had told me he wished me to do when I came of age. He died in a bloody battle against the clockwork on Faydwer, trying to repossess what he originally believed was ours by birthright. All I have from him are letters that he wrote to me, care of my mother, while she stayed safe in Baubbleshire. The first letters were all about justice and honor and victory. Later letters speak of blood and lost friends and hardship and dying dreams. In the end, he wrote of doubts and dismay. He stopped speaking of the clockworks as scrap metal with bad electrics and started describing them as real beings, with thoughts and feelings of their own.

[More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.

Game Update 43 is live and includes new recipes for all tradeskillers. Hurray! However, there’s a catch: you need a significant amount of faction in order to get the recipes.

Kunark has three factions of interest to tradeskillers: Bathezid’s Watch, Riliss, and Legion of Danak. Tradeskillers have always been able to gain faction with these factions but up until recently there was not much incentive. Now each of these factions carries two new unique recipes (or sets of recipes) per tradeskill.

Each faction has the same timeline:

• Apprehensive (-10,000) You can purchase fuel (beware of Danak Shipyard!)
• Amiably (10,000) Quartermaster will sell you advanced recipe books and prov advanced recipe
• Kindly (20,000) initial faction-based tradeskill recipe(s)
• Warmly (30,000) secondary faction-based faction recipe(s)

In addition, -20,000 with Bathezid’s Watch gains you access to Tradeskill Epic Quest.

Note: Although you may be pleased when you gain the convenience of purchasing fuel locally, you should be careful. Not all merchants in Kunark are fair with their pricing.

Bathezid’s Watch

Bathezid’s Watch are located in the Fens of Nathsar. The tradeskill area is indoors at 1191,203,1444. [More...]

Posted by Taymar on http://proof.mmorpg-info.org.