Allakhazam.com News (full)

Newest WotLK beta patch update [World of Warcraft]

The newest build is out for the beta (our patch notes will be updated asap) and here is a little blurb from one of the Blues about the Rogue lovin that just came down the pipe:

"Hello rogues,

We’ve got some updates coming soon for the rogue class and I wanted to duck in and give you a sneak preview of what we’ve been working on as well as our future goals. Below are lists (by no means exhaustive) of some of these changes and goals."

General
- Quality of life improvements: Removal of various reagents (Thieves’ Tools, Flash Powder) as well as a Poisons skill change. We’re removing the Poisons skill and making the finished poisons available on vendors for purchase. This should free up a fair amount of bag space.
- Envenom: Now also increases your chance to apply poisons by 25% for 2-6 seconds (based on combo points).
- Wounding Poison: No longer stacks. The first application now reduces healing by 50%.
- Anesthetic Poison: Now also removes one Enrage effect from the target.
- Evasion, Sprint, Vanish: Cooldown reduced to 3 minutes. (Talents that reduce cooldown take this down to 2 minutes.)
- Cloak of Shadows: Cooldown increased to 2 minutes. (Elusiveness now reduces this cooldown to 1 minute.)
- A new level 75 ability has been designed. This is going to be one of the bigger teases as we’re not quite ready to talk about this one yet. I will say that will add some much needed group utility.
- Fan of Knives: Weapon normalization to equalize effectiveness regardless of weapons carried.

Assassination
- Mutilate: No longer requires you be behind the target.
- Relentless Strikes: Talent is too “required” and will be made more accessible. Vigor will replace its spot in the tree and a new talent will be created to fill Vigor’s spot.
- Find Weakness: Made passive to cut down on the number of triggered effects that either don’t affect gameplay or affect it in a negative way.
- Cut to the Chase: No longer requires a critical Eviscerate or Envenom. The finisher just has to land.
- Hunger for Blood: Now removes any harmful physical effect instead of Bleed or Magic effects. Bleed effects will still be removed (as all are physical) as well as effects like Mortal Strike, Aimed Shot, Expose Armor etc…

Combat
- Riposte: Now generates a combo point.
- Mace Specialization: This will grant armor penetration when using a mace. (The warrior talent will as well.)
- Deflection: Reduced to 3 ranks for 2/4/6% parry. This should soften the prereq for Riposte.
- Fist Weapon Specialization: Merged with Dagger Specialization.
- Dagger Specialization: Renamed Close Quarters Combat, moved to tier 3.
- Dual Wield Specialization: Moved to tier 1. Lightning Reflexes swapped locations with it and still needs a little more “oomph”.
- Unfair Advantage and Stay of Execution: Change to more offensive/utility (read mobility) talents. Too much defense on this tier.
- Killing Spree: Weapon normalization to equalize effectiveness regardless of weapons carried.

Subtlety
- More attractive Tier 1 to draw in all types of builds.
- Fewer dagger specific talents to allow additional build options.
- Wrongfully Accused: Reviewed. This talent doesn’t fit well in this location. May be moved lower and/or redesigned.
- Shadow Dance: A bit awkward at the moment. Due for some polish and some design tweaks.

Plenty to do still as you can see. As I mentioned, this isn’t everything we’ve got our eye on but gives you something to discuss and look for in an upcoming beta patch. Please add to the list anything you think needs special attention.

Turbine's Asheron's Call at Gen Con [Asheron's Call]

Released by Turbine on November 2nd 1999, Asheron's Call (AC), one of the longest running MMOs, is coming up on its 100th update, more than any other game on the market. The team has been focusing on a expansion worth of content free, to celebrate! Community Manager and Assistant Producer Anthony "Frelorn" Cataldo spoke with me at Gen Con and showed me what players can expect to see.

Andy has worked with the AC team for almost five years, working his way up from customer service to his current position. His passion and dedication to the player base are instantly recognizable and he laughs about his wife catching him playing at 5am, asking to come to bed, and then figuring it would be easier to stay up than sleep for an hour. We've all been there, right?

This dedication is mirrored in the entire team, and they wanted to bring to their players an update worthy of the anniversary, and so they asked players what they'd most like to see put into the game. They took these suggestions and built them into this update, an extension of Turbine's commitment to giving players the service they're paying for and deserve.

Since a free update patch has been released by the AC team almost every month, and is a staple of the service Turbine delivers, continuing that tradition with this patch should be no surprise. Scheduled to release next month, the update includes Player versus Player (PvP) land control features and introduces a faction system to the game.

The Society (faction) system will consist of three separate choices, sending players on quests to earn rewards. Players must be at least level 180 (out of 275 available levels) to take advantage of the system. Society quests will be offered, with over 30 new quests available to players working their way through the system. Viewing the Society of fellow players is available to all players through the description panel, but some skills in game may help hide the information from others.

In an effort to make the world a bit more modern for players, the team has also upped the artificial intelligence of mobs, who will now roam, instead of staying in a static location. Mobs will also be under the society system, and will be sensitive to which society players belong. Those who are part of a faction that is different from the creature will have a fight on their hands. If you're of the same faction, they'll let you pass uncontested. In addition, creatures from opposing factions will attack each other, making for some interesting world theatrics as you make your way to your various destinations.

The patch, which offers no instancing, will also have three new land areas to fight over. These areas will offer special quests, loot, and weapons, only available to the society that controls the area. The team hopes to give players a focused area of PvP combat with rewards that are pertinent and fun. Armor will have faction bonuses which are unlocked when more than one piece is obtained and equipped.

New spells will also be finding their way into the game with the update, something not seen since the 2005 expansion, Throne of Destiny, which also offered a complete re-texturing of the world. These level 8 spells can be researched using items, and if you'd rather not craft to receive them, you'll have to find them on a vendor from another player who's made them. An entire new tier level of loot will also make its debut, being offered through drops, some of them with level 8 spells already cast upon them. This will help those who are unable to utilize spells found in the world, for whatever reason.

Turbine will be offering a marketing push including a free download of the 2005 expansion pack, and 30 days free play for players who've since left the world. Newsletters will be making their way to players when the content goes live in September. Special pricing plans with discounts for long term subscriptions, which Turbine is known for, will of course be available.

To prepare for the influx of returning players, and folks who'd like to see what this longstanding game offers, the Asheron's Call website has been redesigned and relaunched just this last week. Returning players should note that there's been no character wipe, so if you've ever played and want to jump back in you'll be able to do so with little frustration or starting over.

The game was made available through digital download last month, through an agreement with Direct2Drive, so if you're looking to try it out, a quick download will find you in game and playing!

After testing and launching this celebratory content patch the team will focus on offering a mail and banking system for players, to help continue the modernization of the game.

The team is excited about their player base getting to see over 8 months of hard work, and some long awaited introductions to the game's continuation. If you can't wait to see what the update is shaping up to look like, check out the Turbine booth at the PAX expo this weekend!

Becky "Tovin" Simpson
Allakhazam.com News Editor & Staff Writer
ZAM Network

The Grab Bag [Dark Age of Camelot]

Time for Joanne's weekly Grab Bag , check out this weeks Q&A's below:

Q. I was just wondering why Anderrson in Svasud Faste is not giving out experience anymore for the Malefic Tooth turn in? Instead he is giving out 75 silver or an RoG gem drop... what's the deal? I thought kill task items like the above mentioned one were to specifically give experience? If this was changed, how did I miss it?

A. The Lady of the Jewels went to Anderrson himself and found this out: Most bounty items do give experience when turned in, however the Malefic Tooth bounty is unique in that it has a random chance to give experience, money, or a gem.

Q. I am wondering about the spell Taunting Shout that is given to all heavy tanks at Level 5. I never had a problem with the resist rates on this spell while I was leveling to 50, but now that I am doing high-level PvE (i.e. orange-purple to 50) and also epic mobs with my Armsman, this spell seems to have an outright resist rate that approaches 95%. I did some testing on this with my guild and other heavy tanks that I’ve contacted have told me that they face similar problems.

Our theory is that because the ability delves as a Level 5 magical ability, it has a naturally high resist rate against mobs that range from 51-65 and beyond. Is the intent of this spell to be ineffective beyond level 50?

A. After quite a bit of testing The Equalizer says: Taunting Shout, though received at level 5, actually is set as a level 50 spell, and should not be suffering from such an extreme resist rate. We will continue to look into the resist rates of this spell, as it has been brought to our attention before. Thank you for the information.

Q. Will there be player controlled mounts on Origins?

A. With a sad look on her face the Lady of the Jewels says no: Player controlled mounts will not be available on the new server type. Increases to speed will be provided exclusively by classes with that magical ability on the Origins ruleset.

Q. I would like to know why I receive different timers on the ablative charges for the Medal of Honor, or Asteroth's Ring of Abomination. The timers in the delve say 10 minutes, but the times I receive vary from 6 minutes to 10. What is going on?

A. After taking quite a few moments to duplicate the issue our very own Equalizer says: If you are using timed buffs while suffering from resurrection sickness, the buffs will be affected by the effectiveness penalty from being recently resurrected. This will affect spell buffs as well as buffs cast from the /use abilities of items.

Q. Recently searching on the Market Explorer and I found remains on a merchant of a creature called Howl. I cannot find anything about it and I haven't been able to speak to the player who has its drop. What is it and where is it found? Can the Remains be made into a housing trophy?

A. Jumping into housing and trophy stuffing the Lady of the Jewels has this information for you: Howl is a named dark hound who roams the woods south of Gna Faste in Midgard. His remains can be turned into a floor trophy. As with many other named mobs, players may need to hunt the other dark hounds in the area to get Howl to appear.

Q. So I recently respec'ed my Cleric to Smite and realized that my power bar takes more damage than the mobs. I tried using a staff with a 50 level focus bonus to all spell lines on it but didn't notice a difference to the power I used. I was wondering if focus bonuses DID in fact work and, if not, could you add a smite focus bonus into the game pretty please. Thanks mucho!

A: With a quick verification to be sure the Equalizer says: Focus bonuses are designed to only affect list casters, such as Wizards, Runemasters, and Mentalists. Because of this, focus bonuses will not affect Clerics.

Q. I love the Wyverns and how fun they are for us on routes. Does this mean they are going to replace the horses in Ligen North Tir Na Nog Adree and other places? Will we be able to have them as a new mount?

A. The Lady of the Jewels always happy to talk about the new routes says: The Dragonfly, Griffon, and Wyvern travel routes will not likely replace all of the horse routes in the game. Horses will still be used for traveling shorter distance from town to town. As far as making Flying Mounts available for players to purchase I'm afraid there are no plans that at this time.

******
ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Camelot Road trip has landed in Seattle. That’s right the Blonde Gremlin and I are on the west coast and we can’t wait to meet up with all of you coming to the Road Trip event tomorrow night. There will be snacks, prizes and plenty of Camelot discussion. Come join us, we always have a great time. For more information about the upcoming Road Trips please click here .

Have you had a chance to do the Doppelganger quests yet? If you haven’t had the opportunity, there is no time like the present. A little gem told me that they might be going dormant as soon as next week. As always keep an eye here on the Herald for all the doppelganger happenings.

With a holiday weekend upon us here in the US/Canada, we started the party early yesterday with the holiday bonuses . If you are needing that little extra for your character, this weekend is a great time to get out there for Bounty Points, Ream Points and that experience you crave!

Well gang, it’s been a long day for me. It’s time for me to kick back, find some chocolate and just enjoy being on the ground for awhile. Have a great holiday weekend and please stay safe. If you plan on drinking, don’t get behind the wheel. I will see y’all out in the frontier!

Hot Fix of the Heart [Dark Age of Camelot]

A little hot fix :

- Fixed an issue that was causing players to be unable to trade the Heart Shards from the new Doppleganger bosses in certain situations.

Project Powder Patch Brings New Course, Items [Project Powder]

The first major content patch for Project Powder is now live. The competitive online snowboard racing game is currently in open beta; anyone can register and play for free at playprojectpowder.com .

Players can now take on a challenging new course, a mirrored version of Smallpox Part 1, or spend their PRO (Project Powder's in-game currency) on 27 new in-game items, including new snowboards and character-specific gear for Ross, Beth, and Max. The new patch also introduces the anticipated "CBT Hoodie," a special permanent item reserved for all players that reached level 5 during Project Powder's closed beta test.

Visit the official Project Powder website now and check out the full patch notes .

HKO Screenies and Video [Hello Kitty Online]

There's a brand new Hello Kitty Online trailer now available! If you're looking for more HKO news and haven't seen the new screen shots, check them out!

There's a few more screen shots on the San Rio Digital blog !

September Version Update Preview [Final Fantasy XI]

From Playonline.com

Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for more streamlined adventuring—the September version update is just around the corner! Continuing in the tradition of enhancing creature comforts in your Vana'dielian lifestyle, we're proud to introduce a number of adjustments and additions scheduled to take place.

Seal Storage

Previous version updates have ushered in numerous improvements to in-game storage, with the Mog Locker and the Mog Safe having been bestowed with increased capacity and several furnishings receiving enhancement tweaks thus far. But that's not all we have to offer!
In next month's update, the development team will take the hassle of storing beastmen's and Kindred's seals out of your hands, and put it into those of orb-dispensing NPC Shami. Through the natural course of gameplay, adventurers will come into possession of not inconsiderable quantities of the abovementioned seals which take up storage space like all other items. From the next version update, however, adventurers will no longer need to leave stacks of seals scattered about their Mog House, waiting to be stepped on by unwary guests to grimacing, painful results. So, whether you have just one or hundreds, swing over with all those cumbersome seals to see Shami at his usual hangout in Port Jeuno and he'll take care of the rest.
*Shami will hold onto seals traded to him with white-knuckled tenacity, but will gladly furnish adventurers with lovely orbs as recompense.

Getting Around in Past Vana'diel

At present, the dominant mode of transport in past Vana'diel is the teleportation service requiring payment in Allied Notes. However, the NPCs based in the three nations offering this service would prioritize their own safety and go into hiding during Campaign battles, greatly inconveniencing adventurers wishing to travel outside of town.
In addressing this issue, the development team has decided to bolster up these NPCs with a much-needed dose of courage so that they will no longer abandon their posts in the face of a beastman invasion.

In addition to the above, rental chocobos will finally be made available for use in areas introduced in the Wings of the Goddess expansion. Players who fulfill the three conditions below will be able to pay Allied Notes to rent a chocobo at their leisure, regardless of the current war climate:
1) Be level 20 or above.
2) Be in possession of a chocobo license.
3) Be affiliated with an allied nation.
*Please note that chocobo whistle usage and digging will not be possible in past Vana'diel.

More Fellows!

Fellows will be receiving tweaks and improvements for the second consecutive version update. On the menu of changes are new armor pieces and a simplified customization system that will allow greater ease in changing your fellow's attire to suit your needs. An exciting new chapter of adventuring with your fellow awaits you!

Azuarc's Lich King Journal, part 3 [World of Warcraft]

Azuarc's explorations continue with the northern half of the Borean Tundra. Meet the Taunka'le, a race of buffalo-men. Face off against giant killer toy robots. Ride into battle on the back of a giant mammoth. All that and more, plus an extensive map of the zone, in part 3.

Politics? Yes we cover that too. [General News]

As the Democratic Convention wraps up and the Republicans start, I'd like to point out our two non gaming forums. Sure we're all gamers, but we are also people, and sometimes we want to talk about things outside gaming. Thus, we have provided two resources for you to interact with the community to talk about politics or any other outside topic. Like all of our forums, the communiy moderates all posts and can rate anything below the default threshold, but the two do differ in how they are treated by our staff.

First is the OOT Forum. This is for moderate discussions on current topics. Posts that flame or get too nasty are moderated by our staff. Posters who get out of hand have been known to be banned. We try to keep the discussions here from getting too personal or insulting.

The other forum is called The Asylum. We mostly let this forum alone. Post at your own risk. The rhetoric here is sharp and risque and not always for the faint of heart.

You are welcome to join in, or just read the results.

Holiday Weekend Bonuses! [Dark Age of Camelot]

Woohoo, bonuses are back:

We've got some extra special bonuses for you to enjoy for the holiday weekend and they have already started, read on:

The following Zone Bonuses are now live:

On Classic and Normal Ruleset servers, the following bonuses have been added:
200% bonus to XP in all classic zones and dungeons.
200% bonus to BP in all NF zones.
125% bonus to RP in all NF zones.

On the PVP ruleset server the following bonuses have been added:
200% bonus to BP in all classic zones and dungeons.
200% bonus to BP in all NF zones.
125% bonus to RP in all classic zones and dungeons.
125% bonus to RP in all NF zones.

On the PVE ruleset server the following bonuses have been added:
200% bonus to XP in all classic zones and dungeons.
200% bonus to BP in the capital cities.
125% bonus to RP in the capital cities.

Please note: The bonuses above will last through Tuesday 9/2/08