Patch Notes for Nov. 3rd Update

[Calandryll]

http://betaforums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=233

[Signe]

Ooooh, shiny!  Ta for the link.   

[Samwise]

To solve this problem, we implemented the need to unlock the higher difficulty levels. So to play a dungeon on Hard, you have to have finished it on Normal; to play on Elite, you have to have finished Hard. (Of course, just someone in the Party has to have unlocked it for you to play it). Once you finish Elite, you get a big XP bonus for it as the final carrot.

I think I like this.  I'm hoping that the system will still scale back rewards if you try to repeat the quest on Elite over and over...?

Story quests now you give you the following rewards, depending on how long the Story Quest should take:

 

Dungeon Quest XP reduction
We’ve reduced the XP from dungeon quests by about 1/3, to account for the increase in XP from the optional objective system.

My gut reaction is  :-(.  I'll wait and see, though.

Fewer Collectables to trade in for a reward
In order to reduce inventory clutter a bit, you now only need 3 common items, 2 uncommon items, or 1 rare item to trade in for a reward.

YAY!  I and my fellow pack rats thank you.  It was getting so I was ignoring loot so I'd have more space for mushrooms.

Yet another small tweak adding life to the Harbor, you’ll now notice that the cranes are busy helping loading goods brought in from the ships. A busy port town, Stormreach is!

When did you guys hire Yoda to do your patch notes?

Trees particle prettiness
The Jorasco floating trees are now powered by pretty particles. You can never have too many pretty particles!

YAY SHINY!

Better perching solutions
Many of our monsters now have some type of missile attack to use when they can’t reach you with a melee attack. We’ll be adding this functionality to even more monsters in the upcoming weeks.

As much as I loved being able to take down high level mobs with my little Axe of Returning, this is probably a good thing.  Sigh.

When you get a tell, you’ll hear a pleasant “ding”.

YAY DING!

/Friends list!
That’s right…you can now find your friends! The tab is located in the Social panel…never be friendless again!

YAAAY!  That's really the thing I was missing the most.  Now I don't need to send a barrage of failed tells to figure out if people I know are online.

[HaemishM]

Dungeon Quest XP reduction
We’ve reduced the XP from dungeon quests by about 1/3, to account for the increase in XP from the optional objective system.

My gut reaction is  :-(.  I'll wait and see, though.

My initial reaction is the same. I already think it's very VERY slow going to level a character. But I'll wait and see. My percpetion is probably significantly clouded by not being able to play at home. But it feels like forever before I get any kind of new ability or upgrade to the character.

Also, good on you for the /friends list and the /tell dings. Very much needed.

[Signe]

I thought you got a new computer the other day!  Did you break it already?  If so, you have become me.  I'm always breaking my stuff when it's new I still like them. 

[HaemishM]

See my weird bugginess thread. For some reason, trying to enter any instanced content kicks me hangs for a while, then tells me the connection to the server has been lost.

[Signe]

Does your strange buggy computer have something to do with your blood title?  I'm worried.

[Sky]

Is it true that the menstrual flow is really just the wounds of the christ flowing? "Sorry, baby. I've got my stigmata this week."

[Signe]

In Australia, a womans mentrual cycle runs counter clockwise.

And now, since I am muchly out numbered... either stop talking about this or let PopTart in.

[Calandryll]

Publish is done and the server is back. Enjoy! :)

[Sky]

Here's a fun fact: poptart is what I call girls like Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson. No offense intended to Ms. Tart.

[Signe]

I logged in with a new character this morning and when I entered the n00bie inn, a quest box popped up.  "Kobold Assult" .  I have to kill 200 kobolds and I have 196 left... even though this character hasn't accepted any quests and hasn't killed a blessed thing yet.  I'm putting it here because I can't get the website to even move from page to page for me, again.  the /reportbug in game doesn't do anything for me either... although that could be my bad SyntaxFu.

It seems to be an erroneous message, anyway.  You don't actually have the quest at this time.  It's not listed in your quest list and, even if you leave the box up, it disappears once you accept the first mission.

Nice tutorial, btw.  Is there any way to turn off the info boxes?  My new characters are as nubbie as my first one and they have wonderful memories.  (Memories, Sky... I didn't say mammories)

[HaemishM]

HURRAH! This patch apparently fixed whatever weirdness I was experiencing that wouldn't let me get into instances. I logged on and did the first mission of the tutorial with no hassle. It looks much improved, though I can't speak of the combat because there was very little in the initial mission.

But in true Haemish fashion, PopTart's computer died last night for some inexplicable reason. Just dead stick, either wouldn't power up or when it did, it just sat there on CPU ID and never loaded the BIOS or checked the memory health. Luckily, it's still under warranty, we just have to ship the fucker back. She did manage to play on my box after I went to bed, and had a favorable impression.

[Sky]

She did manage to play on my box after I went to bed, and had a favorable impression.

Mama's got a squeeze box she wears on her chest, and when Daddy comes home, he never gets no rest?

[schild]

But in true Haemish fashion, PopTart's computer died last night for some inexplicable reason. Just dead stick, either wouldn't power up or when it did, it just sat there on CPU ID and never loaded the BIOS or checked the memory health. Luckily, it's still under warranty, we just have to ship the fucker back. She did manage to play on my box after I went to bed, and had a favorable impression.

I seriously think it's about time you got some guy to come out to the house and check out the wiring. Also, buy a kickass UPS.

[HaemishM]

Only if said guy brings along a chicken to sacrifice over this motherfucker.

[WayAbvPar]

I am up and running- played a bit Wednesday night and downloaded the patch last night (but didn't play). It is actually a lot of fun so far, which is pretty amazing for an alpha/early beta. Looking forward to seeing more of it over the weekend. Cautiously optimistic...been a long time since a beta made me feel like that. Of course, that was Shadowbane, so we aren't out of the woods yet 

[Signe]

Are you all too shy to put your names in the other thread?

[WayAbvPar]

I haven't created a character since the wipe, so I don't have any names yet. Depends on what type of character I create- I have a few old characters to recreate. Yay for D&D!


God, I am such a nerd.

[HaemishM]

Are you all too shy to put your names in the other thread?

As if you have to ask what name I picked.

Actually, you do, since I couldn't get the improper spelling (Haemish) and had to go with Hamish.

[Sky]

Are you all too shy to put your names in the other thread?

Hell, I hardly have time to play anything, and Civ4 is still teh shiney. Mmo is pretty low on my list of games to play, I just don't like them unless they're like Planetside or something. DDO scares me because there's already a farming problem. I'm not uber and/or whatnot.

[Signe]

I always try the other forms of Haemish, just as I do with Righ.... which brings up the old Shadowbane joke... "Anyone want a Haemish on Righ? "

I swear I must be the funniest person in the world!  Have a rofltaco!

[Signe]

Ahem.  Anyway.  Be careful in the flowing water in the sewer type areas.  I am constantly getting stuck and having to /suicide out.  I seem to be able to avoid getting stuck if I run from side to side and hop around like a flipping idiot.

[HaemishM]

I've found a weird glitchy glitchness. Every once in a while as I'm running forward (pressing the W key) if I try to turn just a bit while running forward, I get turned around the complete opposite of the way I'm running. It's almost like some kind of warping, where I'm flooding the server's buffer with forward commands that when it gets a command to turn at the same time it gets the command to run forward it just shits itself. It's mostly annoying, not gamebreaking.

Also, my problem may not have been fixed. PopTart was trying it earlier this morning after I went to work and after the newbie area, was getting the same disconnect issues.

[Signe]

That happens to me, too.  It's startling.  I just figured it was my fingers and brain not connecting properly or some strange rubberbandiness.

[Calandryll]

I've found a weird glitchy glitchness. Every once in a while as I'm running forward (pressing the W key) if I try to turn just a bit while running forward, I get turned around the complete opposite of the way I'm running. It's almost like some kind of warping, where I'm flooding the server's buffer with forward commands that when it gets a command to turn at the same time it gets the command to run forward it just shits itself. It's mostly annoying, not gamebreaking.

Also, my problem may not have been fixed. PopTart was trying it earlier this morning after I went to work and after the newbie area, was getting the same disconnect issues.

The "whirl-around" thing is a known bug. Had it happen to me this morning while trying to take a screenshot. Created a nice blur effect in the shot, but not really useable. :)

I haven't been able to get any specifics on why that keeps happening to you Haemish. Still looking into it though.

[WayAbvPar]

I think it is a Hurricane Katrina after-effect. I blame FEMA.

[HaemishM]

Mike Brown is having non-consensual intercourse with my router.

[Sky]

Mike Brown is having non-consensual intercourse with my router.

Browny's doing a great job?

[Samwise]

DDO scares me because there's already a farming problem. I'm not uber and/or whatnot.

The plus side of everything being instanced is that as long as they don't start scaling the dungeons up to cater to the uber farmers more, it's theoretically possible to play the game as if there wasn't any farming.  You just can't do it with pickup groups because odds are that any pickup group will have at least one uber farmer that makes the rest of the group irrelevant.

Which is why I'm so excited about the Friends list - it makes it that much easier to avoid pickup groups.   :-D

[Samwise]

Wow, they nerfed Mage Armor all to hell.  From lasting 1 hour to 1 minute.   :-(

[Signe]

So, on Tuesday they're giving giving away beta invites to a friend if they find you in a dungeon.  Did Rasix ever get his invite?

[WayAbvPar]

Really? My buddy would kill to get in...he keeps asking me about it. HD folks might remember him- he was in the guild.

[Signe]

Really? My buddy would kill to get in...he keeps asking me about it. HD folks might remember him- he was in the guild.

How can we remember if you don't say who he is?     You spend way enough time online to be a registered card carrying sad fuck like the rest of us, and yet you have all these friends stashed away.  How is that fair?

I guess, just in case you play on Tuesday, have his email address handy.  I don't know how they're going to do it... whether you give them the info on the spot or they email you the code to give your friend. 

[WayAbvPar]

I couldn't remember his character names when I posted!   With a bit of sleep, I seem to recall that he was Amnys/Korselaine in SB.