Gamer Monkey » WAR Guides

Scenario XP and What you need to know by Kuntz

Lifebane — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:20:54 +0000

Kuntz put together a great guide to scenarios and how the xp and renown points are handled within those scenario groups. Give it a through read since you may find parts of it enlightening if you aren’t already a scenario seasoned veteran. He has graciously let us repost this here for others to view and learn from it. Thanks for sharing the knowledge Kuntz!

“How Scenario XP/RP Really Works & What You Need To Know To Farm It

I’m going to keep this short and simple, as there is a lot of misconceptions about how these two values are calculated. I gathered this data through testing and playing over 250 scenarios and accumulating around 11,000 RvR kills on a Runepriest! For the classes I list, assume the true is the same for the Destruction equivs. I am a Runepriest, so I will post some of my general farming tips and strategies for that class.

I’ve joined a match with only 7 minutes left to go, only to have 1,500 more Renown then anyone else in the entire match. I’ve joined matches late and earned the most RP/XP out of everyone in the scenario. Farming XP/RP is pretty straight forward, there is no complex math involved or crazy weird mechanics for calculating it. After reading this, you should be able to go out there and maximize your farmtr0n.

Experience Breakdown:

Experience (XP) is gained through kills and kills only. You do not gain XP for doing objectives, healing people, or damaging them. You gain much more XP for getting the killing blow, and even more XP if you get a solo kill.

To get a ‘kill’, you either need to be near the person when someone in your Team kills them, OR, you kill them, OR, you need to ‘tag’ them for death, aka, do any amount of damage to them atleast once. When they die, even if it’s 10 minutes later, you will be credited for the kill. If you’re a Runepriest, it’s important to lay some of your crappy dots, or AoE dot, on enemies, just to ‘tag’ them for kills. By doing this as an RP, you can easily tie the lead for kills on your team, despite not really doing anything to anyone.

XP is ratio’d to your level. The higher level you are, the more XP you’ll get out of the final XP pool for your team (more on this later). So if you find yourself ‘doing’ better then other players in your scenario but getting less XP, it’s probably because they were 1) higher level then you, or 2) in a better team then you which earned more pool XP.

You also gain a Win XP bonus at the end. Currently a Tier 3 Win gives me 8,500 XP. I do not know the rates for the other Tiers. This reward is scaled by your current level.

Renown Breakdown:

Renown (RP) is gained by getting kills, killing people, and solo-killing people. You also gain it through healing people other then yourself. The general forumula for Renown from heals is the amount you healed the player for divided by 100 (rounded down). So if you heal someone for 370, you will get a +3 RP update. So if you are a Runepriest, having HoT’s all over the place is pretty important for farming Renown. If someone falls into the lava, thank whoever knocked them there, and then spend all your AP healing them with Grungi’s Gift untill they die. You’ll get quite the RP for it, I promise

Much like XP, Renown is pooled for your team and split between you at the end of the match. It is not scaled to your level, so if you are low level, you can still farm high amounts of RP and beat out high levels on the final score chart.

You also gain a Win RP bonus at the end. If your team wins, you get your score. If your team loses, you get half your score. If you win with 500 points, you get a bonus 100 for 600 total. (Thanks Lasmrah)

Team Breakdown (IMPORTANT):

Experience (XP) and Renown (RP) is shared with your team. If you play in your own team, you keep all the xp/rp you earn. If you suck at earning xp/rp, you’ll want to join a team with xp/rp farmers (Runepriests & Brightwizards). If you are a Runepriest or Brightwizard, you probably will want to be in your very own team. Runepriests can’t kill anyone, so you’ll get crap XP, but you’ll get the most Renown out of any class. My RP can farm 4,000 RP in a scenario, but I’ll usually get less then 2,000 XP! My friends Brightwizard can farm 20,000 XP in a scenario, and also farm 4,000 RP as well. BW’s are the scenario farming champs if they go solo, however, this is only true if they have a dedicated Runepriest in another team healing them.

Remember, everything you earn is shared with your team, and everything they earn is shared with you. If you are on a team and you are the best player in terms of earnings, this will work to your disadvantage. If you are a Brightwizard or Runepriests, try to get on to teams with other BW’s and RP’s. If you’re on a team with nothing but tanks and melee, and they’re higher level then you, they’ll get 80% of everything you earn, leaving you with nothing much to brag about.

There are 5 teams available to join during a match. You can change teams at any time during the match by click on the White Flag button on your screen. You’re usually put on Team 1 or 2, sometimes 3 if it’s a full match (most players I’ve seen is 18 per side, aka 3 teams of 6 players per side). If you want to try solo, leave your Team and join an empty one like Team 4 or Team 5.

And that about wraps up the guide. To farm high XP/RP, you generally need to run strats different then strats needed to win the match, so you will need to find a nice balance between maximum farm-mode and win-mode, as winning in itself gives huge XP/RP bonuses. So don’t exactly throw a match just to farm a bit of XP or RP, as it’ll not be close to the bonuses you get from winning. However, if you already are going to lose, might as well stop playing to win and start playing to farm.”

How to get rid of the annoying logo loads when you start the Warhammer

Lifebane — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:15:08 +0000

Kuntz from Over on Drifting Castle Server tossed together a nice little script to disable the logo and load animations from Warhammer Online. Many people have already used it and Kuntz is a legitimate person, no funky spyware or anything like that. Tried it out myself and it worked fine. Read below to see what he posted on the matter and the link to his file to work this magic. Posted here with permission from Kuntz of course.

"I (Kuntz) made a bunch of unofficial Guild Wars mods (binaries) over the past 4 years that have run on 25,000++ accounts with not ONE person complaining about getting their account hacked. I'm pretty sure it'll take less then 24 hours for this topic to fill up with people who know of my mods and how they are trustworthy. Not only that, there is full source code included!

NoMovie v1.2

v1.1 – Updated to support Euro versions/movies. Users who have already successfully patched do not need to download this update.

v1.2 – Updated to solve the problem where some files were set to Read-Only by the WAR Installer thus preventing the nomovie.exe patcher from patching correctly. Users who have already successfully patched do not need to download this update.

http://www.k-u-n-t-z.com/addons/nomovie.zip

Read README.TXT and enjoy! Source included.

100% coded by myself (Kuntz)."

Heavy Metal Objective List for unlocking new classes

Lifebane — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 00:04:54 +0000

The Heavy Metal Event will be coming to an end very soon. If you still have not gotten your chest reward which will give you early access to the new classes then you better get moving quickly. The rest of this article should help you a bit in sorting out what to do and where.

There are many different tasks to complete which divide up nicely into 2 categories, Reikland Factory or Non-Reikland Factory. The tasks within the Reikland Factory group require you to get in the queue for the new Reikland Factory scenario. Once in there the tasks can be completed throughout the instance. The non-Reikland Factory tasks are completed outside of the Reikland Factory Obviously.

Non-Reikland Factory:

Complete 3 Stages of a Public Quest x2: Pick a public quest, any public quest.. bash your way through it and you are on your way. And no , the 3 stages of a public quest do not even need to be the same public quest. And this is actually a required task twice during this event.

Visit the Herald in the Capital City: As soon as you land in your capital city you wll find the Herald standing close by where the flight master is located. Toss him a quick howdy do and be on your way.

Visit a Captial City: No brainer here. Go visit big city folks and BAM, done.

Kill 15 Enemies in Open RvR: Find any PVP enabled area, scenario or RVR Lake and hit at least 15 enemy players that end up dead. done.

Kill 20 Undead: Kill 20 of any undead, not being too picky here.

Complete 5 Quests: If you are towards the end game, this may also sound like a bit of a hassle. It appears anything counts for this, including Discoveries and Kill Collector updates. Worst case, find a daily quest (they are in every hub) and spend an hour doing five or grab the scenario quests.

Reikland Factory:

Participate in the Reikland Factory Scenario: Go get in the Reikland Factory queue and finish the scenario. done.

Complete the Scouting Quest for Reikland Factory Scenario: The quest giver NPC is short distance in front of you when you are in the scenario. Talk to him, get the quest and they you simply need to go visit the various areas within the scenario which are as always, highlighted in red on your map. Go run about and dodge attackers… done. The locations you will need to scout out are the following: the Landing, the Steam Tank Factory, the Warehouse, and the Machine Shop.

Find the sand castle in Reikland Factory: There are 2 locations to get this update, if you are Order go right once you get in zone and if Chaos, go left once in zone.

Kill 10 Factory Chickens in the Reikland Factory Scenario: These yard birds are scattered throughout the scenario but scarcely. You may not get them all in one run but if you run the instance a few times and look for them, you will have no issues getting yoru 10.

Detonate the Steam Tank Ammo in the Reikland Factory Scenario: It took me a bit of time to find this one, then when I did I realized i was blind or plain dumb. Inside the Steam Tank Factory (big building in the middle) you will find a barrel near the wall to the north (inside). click it, it blows up, you go flying, done!

Throw 5 Gaffer's Gravybombs at Enemy Players in the Reikland Factory Scenario: These little pies are found in various locations throughout the scenario, yes they look like pies. click on them and you will pick them up. From within your inventory, click on the pie while you have an enemy character targeted. Boom. Pie gone.. go find another one. This can also take a few tries at this scenario to complete since the pies are desired by most players in there and you can only carry one at a time. Not to mention the fact that they are not instantly available to pickup after someone picks it up before you.

Have your Realm eat the Famous Factory Sandwich in the Reikland Factory Scenario: Inside of the Steam Tank Factory (bug middle building again) you will find a table in the center of it with a sandwich on it. Anyone can grab it and eat it, but regardless of who does, all wiill get credit for it on your side (order / chaos) that are currently in that scenario.

There you have it folks, the "to do" list to get your early acess to the Heavy Metal careers. Go get busy and finish those tasks you lazy git!

Warhammer Online: Zone Listing and Overview

Lifebane — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 02:19:40 +0000

Here you can find an alphabetical listing of the various zones within the online world of Warhammer Online, Age of Reckoning. For additional information each overview is linked to the more descriptive text from the official Warhammer online site

Avelorn : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
The verdant realm of Avelorn is among the most ancient of Ulthuan's kingdoms. A vast, magical forest bathed in the warm light of eternal summer, Avelorn is land of great cultural significance to the High Elves.

Badlands : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
'The Badlands' is the name given to the arid, rocky country that lies between the Worlds Edge Mountains and the Dragonback Mountains. This desolate land is home to some of the most vicious and brutal tribes of greenskins to be found anywhere. The harsh environment and constant state of conflict weed out the weak and unworthy. In the Badlands, only the strongest survive.

Barak Varr : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Barak Varr is the lone seaport of the Dwarf lands, and has long been a key commercial center of the Old World. Although the lands of Barak Varr technically include all of the ports, docks, and anchorages that line the easternmost limb of the Black Gulf, what most mean when they refer to 'Barak Varr' is the Great Cove, the massive port facility hewn deep into the Cliffs of Gamrud.

Black Crag : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
In the Age of Reckoning, the war between the Dwarfs and the Greenskins rages on many fronts, but few are as important as Black Crag. If, against all odds, the Dwarfs can claim a victory in this dangerous maze of winding canyons and jagged spires of rock, the road to the Greenskins' fortress at Karak Eight Peaks will be open. Then, finally, the sons of Grungni will be able to strike back against their hated enemies and turn the tide of the war.

Black Fire Pass : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Black Fire Pass has been the site of many battles throughout the course of history, but none were as significant as the first which was fought there. At Black Fire Pass, a great force of Dwarfs led by King Kurgan Ironbeard joined with a human army under the command of a young hero named Sigmar to confront and ultimately destroy a great horde of greenskins. Following the battle, King Ironbeard swore a great oath that for all time, the Dwarfs would safeguard the eastern mountain approaches to the lands of men.

Caledor : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Situated in the southwestern reaches of Ulthuan, Caledor is a sparsely-populated land dominated by a range of tall and majestic mountain spires. Hidden among these towering peaks are secret valleys filled with lush greenery, and a vast and labyrinthine network of caverns wind beneath the stony earth throughout the province. The mountains of Caledor are an impressive sight, but the kingdom today is a pale reflection of its former glory.

Chaos Wastes : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
The Chaos Wastes, also known as the Umbra Chaotica, lie far to the north of the Empire of Men, near the top of the world. Found beyond even the farthest reaches of Norsca and the Sea of Swords, the Chaos Wastes are comprised of terrain both frigid and desolate, wherein few natural things grow and only the most desperate or highly mutated creatures can hope to survive for long.

Chrace : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
A rugged region of green hills that rise to meet the piney slopes of the Annulii Mountains, Chrace provides its defenders with many advantages. As they draw nearer to the mountains, the Dark Elves will find the steep and rocky terrain increasingly difficult to navigate.

Dragonwake : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
In the eastern reaches of Caledor, the tall mountain peaks yield to grassy hills that eventually slope down to meet the western border of Eataine. Though the lands to the west are more mountainous, the caves that run beneath the hills of this region are as deep as any in Caledor, and many ancient Dragons slumber within them. In ages past, when the lands of the High Elves came under threat, the Dragon Princes traveled to this land to rouse the slumbering beasts to war. For this reason, the western-most region of Caledor came to be known as Dragonwake.

Eataine : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
An idyllic and pastoral province of villas, vineyards, and rolling green hills, Eataine is the kingdom to which the nobles of Ulthuan retire to spend their summers. The opulence of Eataine's great manors is unsurpassed in the lands of the High Elves, for Eataine is not only home to some of the greatest poets, scholars and warriors of the Asur, but also to the Phoenix King himself.

Ekrund : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Amid the rocky slopes of Ekrund, the Dwarfs long ago built a great mining fortress that fell to their hated enemies, the Orcs and Goblins. As the Age of Reckoning dawns, Dwarf forces have made a determined push into the Dragonback Mountains, reclaiming the fortress at Ekrund and claiming a tenuous foothold in the lands surrounding it.

Ellyrion : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
The vast, rolling plains and mild climate of Ellyrion make this inner kingdom the perfect breeding ground for the finest Elven steeds in all of Ulthuan. Great herds of these amazingly swift and graceful creatures roam the grasslands throughout the year, and are prized among the noble lords of the Phoenix King�s court for their magnificent quality and majestic beauty.

High Pass : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
High Pass is home to all manner of fearsome creatures, for nothing weak can survive there. Every beast that dwells among the frozen peaks is a savage predator. Great, muscular Sabertusks stalk their prey silently through the snow and then pounce, using their huge, sharp tusks to deliver a mortal wound. Packs of ravenous mountain wolves bay at the cold light of the moon before descending from the slopes to hunt. Perhaps the most frightening of these creatures are the towering Yhetees, whose hands end in great rending claws several inches long.

Kadrin Valley : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Among all the warriors of the Dwarfs, the doom-laden Slayers are the most feared. Driven by some secret shame or disgrace, these fearless fighters have pledged to regain their honor by seeking death in battle. Upon taking the Slayer oath, a Dwarf severs all ties to home and family and wanders the world in search of his fate. Though they often travel alone, there is one place where the Slayers are known to gather in force. That place is Karak Kadrin, the Slayer Keep.

Marshes of Madness : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Throughout this festering, chaotic swamp can be found deposits of Oathgold, one of the rarest and most valuable types of gold known to dwarfs. Amid the crumbling Mourkain pillars that rise like bony fingers from the murk, the Dwarfs struggle to mine this precious mineral while the greenskins eagerly prey upon the caravans transporting the gold back to the Dwarf capital of Karaz-a-Karak.

Mount Bloodhorn : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Once inhabited by Dwarfs and mercenaries, Mount Bloodhorn is infested by a great greenskin horde that now call the area "home". Where once lush forests grew, the surrounding lands were laid to waste as the Orcs and Goblins hacked down every tree in sight to build their stockades, siege engines, and pens for their Squigs.

Nordland : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
More than any other subjects of the Empire, the Nordlanders know what it means to live under the shadow of Chaos. The Barony of Nordland lies but a short sail across the Sea of Claws from the havens of the Northmen. Constant incursions by these savage barbarians are nothing new to the Nordlanders; they have withstood assaults from the hordes of Chaos for centuries.

Norsca : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
In the eyes of most citizens of the Empire, Norsca is a wild and untamed land, full of dangerous creatures both natural and unnatural. Perhaps this is true in the deep north, but along its southern borders where Norsca joins with the northernmost provinces of Kislev, a civilizing influence has taken hold. Here, brave adventurers and resourceful frontiersmen who don't feel at home in the cities and towns of the south cross the border into Norsca to find their fortune.

Ostland : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
With its back pressed hard against the Middle Mountains to the south and west, the Grand Principality of Ostland is a province dominated by the dark and forbidding Forest of Shadows. Hulking and ancient, the trees of this vast woodland realm shroud the land in a perpetual green dusk, broken only by the occasional clearing or settlement hacked from the dense undergrowth.

Praag : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
There are only three large cities in Kislev; the capital, also called Kislev, Erengrad, and the northern city of Praag, which is closer to the dreaded Realm of Chaos than any other city in the Old World. It is mainly because of this proximity to the lands of Chaos that the history of Praag is filled with conflict and strife. Time and again, hordes of Northmen have poured southward across the Lynsk river to descend upon the city with the intention of plundering its resources before razing it to the ground. These sieges are most deadly when led by a mighty Champion of the Ruinous Powers.

Reikland : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Compared to their fellow countrymen in the north, the people of Reikland live a blessed existence. Lately however, a shadow has fallen over the province and the threat of invasion that once seemed so distant has now reached their borders. The warhost of the north has come, and it seems increasingly clear that no force in the Empire can stop it.

Saphery : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
As the heart of Ulthuan's magical traditions, Saphery is a natural target of the Dark Elf invasion. Not only is Saphery home to many of Ulthuan's High Elf Archmages, it also holds countless artifacts and items of power. If the servants of Malekith can gain control of even a fraction of these magical resources, they can twist their power to their own ends, while simultaneously weakening the High Elves.

Shadowlands : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Violent and apocalyptic energies were unleashed, tearing the northern lands of Ulthuan apart. A wall of seawater a thousand feet high crashed into Nagarythe and drowned countless thousands. At the last moment, Malekith and the other surviving Sorcerers chanted spells to preserve their greatest fortresses, transforming them into floating Black Arks. These sailed westward, eventually coming to rest in the north of the New World. Malekith named this land Naggaroth and his exiled people, now called Dark Elves, made a new civilization for themselves.

Talabecland : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
The Grand Duchy of Talabecland lies at the center of the Empire and borders upon more Grand Provinces than any other. Talabecland's dominant features include the rivers Stir and Talabec, and the Great Forest. Much of the province's trade flows along these rivers, and north and south along the Great Forest Road. When times are relatively tranquil, the province is a thriving center of commerce and the many coaching inns that line the roads of Talabecland are typically filled to capacity with merchants and tradesmen of all kinds. In the Age of Reckoning, however, Talabecland is anything but tranquil.

The Blighted Isle : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Long ago, during the catastrophic civil war known as the Sundering, terrible magical energies were unleashed upon the northern kingdoms of Ulthuan. The land was riven by cataclysmic earthquakes and swallowed by the raging waters of the ocean. All that now remains of these once-proud provinces are a number of broken, twisted islands. The most important of these is the Blighted Isle, and at the dawn of the Age of Reckoning it is here that the Dark Elves' invasion of Ulthuan begins.

Thunder Mountain : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
With its rivers of molten lava, pits filled with choking sulfurous gas and broken landscape of jagged black rock, Thunder Mountain is a fitting backdrop for the conflict that now rages on its slopes. The landscape is harsh, unforgiving and lethal, much like the warriors of the Dwarf and greenskin armies who wage a bloody battle here.

Troll Country : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
Troll Country is the name commonly given to the cold and desolate territory that lies to the north of Kislev, and to the south of the Chaos Wastes. The landscape is every bit as harsh and unforgiving as the creatures who inhabit it; tall formations of jagged rock jut upward from the earth like the fingers of some monstrous creature trying to claw its way to the surface. The ground is broken and uneven, with steep inclines and sudden, treacherous pits and valleys. A chill wind blows perpetually across the bleak and barren terrain, rattling dead, dry leaves that hang from the skeletal limbs of the scrawny trees which dot the landscape.

Ulthuan : Official Warhammer Zone Overview
The arrival of House Uthorin's massive Black Ark at the northern coast of the Blighted Isle represents the first strike in the Dark Elves invasion of Ulthuan. Just as the legions of Druchii warriors spill out onto the craggy, mist-shrouded bluffs of black rock, they are ambushed by the warriors of the Shining Guard. The Blighted Isle is a place of particular importance to the Dark Elves, for it is home to the dread Shrine of Khaine, the Lord of Murder that the Druchii revere.

Source: Official Site

The History of Warhammer (Background Story)

Lifebane — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 02:13:13 +0000

Age of Reckoning: Part 1 – An Empire In Chaos

When the first reports of the Chaos Plague begin to appear in the fringe settlements of the Empire, they are dismissed as fanciful tales conjured to frighten away unwanted visitors. When the plague appears in the streets of Altdorf, however, the situation changes completely. By the time the Emperor issues his first quarantine order, the vile disease has already spread across most of his lands. The Empire's doctors work day and night to combat the sickness, but the plague defies all efforts at a cure.

Victims of the Chaos Plague first experience tiredness, aching, soreness and extreme thirst. Bouts of nausea follow, but it takes nearly a month to reach the final stages of the disease. It is only then that the horrific nature of the plague is made clear; those unfortunate souls who have experienced plague symptoms for three to four weeks begin to change, transforming into fiendish Chaos mutants that savagely attack any living creature that they see. Those lucky enough to avoid contracting the plague are often killed by the savage monsters spawned from it.

With each passing month, the death toll mounts. Quarantines and martial law fail to slow the spread of the disease, and paranoid fear grips every village and town within the Empire's borders. Militiamen in plague-wracked cities are forced to combat the hordes of Chaos mutants roaming their streets, leaving their walls undefended against threats from without. Emboldened gangs of brigands roam the countryside, looting, burning and killing at will. The scope of the tragedy is almost unparalleled in the history of the Empire, but the Chaos Plague is merely a precursor to a much greater evil yet to come.

Age of Reckoning: Part 2 – Dark Omens

Meanwhile, in the Dark Elf kingdom of Naggaroth, the Seers of Ghrond continue their unceasing study of the distant Chaos Maelstrom. Suddenly, there is a marked shift in the nebulous swirls of color and shape. The Seers watch intently, studying the ominous new patterns. When they are confident of their readings, the Seers dispatch a messenger south to Naggarond aboard a swift Black Pegasus. Great events are about to unfold in the world, and the Witch King must be informed.

Days later, Malekith, Lord of the Dark Elves, reads the dispatch from Ghrond. The Chaos god Tzeentch has found himself a new Champion. The followers of the Changer of Ways have assembled a great warhost for his herald and are preparing to launch a massive incursion into the lands of men, the Empire his likely target.

Malekith ponders the message. He is well aware of the terrible plague sweeping through the Old World. If the forces of Chaos launch an attack while the Empire is weakened by the plague, the Emperor will have no choice but to call upon the nearby Dwarfs for reinforcement. With the aid of the Dwarfs, it is possible the Chaos host might be turned back. If, however, the folk of the mountains are unable to come to the Empire's defense, Emperor Karl Franz will be forced to turn to the High Elves of Ulthuan. Malekith is doubtful that his kinsmen will abandon the great nation of men in its hour of need, for doing so might deprive the High Elves of a valuable ally. No… the High Elves will respond, and will likely send several legions of warriors to repulse the Chaos attack, leaving Ulthuan vulnerable.

When the Chaos moon eclipses the light of the sun, the dispatch concludes, the forces of Chaos will begin their march southward. Time is short, and there is much to do.

The Witch King commands that every forge and furnace in the realm be brought to bear in the crafting of weapons, armor and siege machines. The Beastmasters of Karond Kar are ordered to select the strongest and most ferocious creatures in their pens and ready them for battle. The fierce Witch Elves of Khaine prepare for bloody sacrifice to the Lord of Murder. Morathi, the Hag Queen, summons forth the most powerful Sorceresses from the Convents and trains them to lead the armies of the Dark Elves. As his people prepare for the coming war, Malekith draws up his plans against the Dwarfs.

A party of the finest hunters and warriors in Naggaroth are dispatched to the lands of the greenskins with a single directive: bring back the most powerful Orc Warboss that can be found.

When the hunting party returns with both an Orc and a Goblin, Malekith is surprised. It seems the two are inseparable, jointly leading a powerful new tribe calling themselves the "Bloody Sun Boyz". The goblin shaman, Gazbag, provides the brains while the towering brute of an Orc, Grumlok, supplies the muscle. For each, Malekith forges a magical amulet that greatly amplifies the wearer's abilities. In addition, the Witch King secretly includes a spell of command that will compel the two leaders to gather their tribe and march east into the World's EdgeMountains. There, they will capture the fortress at Eight Peaks and build a mighty Waaagh! to eradicate the Dwarfs. This being done, he commands his warriors to return the captive greenskins to their home.

His plan set in motion, Malekith waits for news from the World's EdgeMountains. With the Dwarfs occupied by the fight against the coming greenskin Waaagh!, they will be unable to answer the Emperor's call for help when the Chaos army reaches his borders. The High Elves will sail east for the Old World, and Malekith will launch his attack. At last, the Witch King will claim the birthright denied him for millennia by his weak-blooded kin. The Throne of Ulthuan will be his.

Age of Reckoning: Part 3 – The Bloody Sun Rises

In the Badlands, Gazbag and Grumlok are reunited with the Bloody Sun Boyz. Immediately, the two set out to fulfill Malekith's magically-implanted command. Led by their newly-empowered Warboss and Shaman, the Boyz begin their march to the World's Edge Mountains, assimilating any greenskin tribe they encounter and destroying those who will not join. Never before have the Orcs and Goblins seen such strength and power from two of their own kind, and the ranks of the Bloody Sun Boyz swell as rumors of their deeds spread.

As the greenskin horde approaches Karak Eight Peaks, the Dwarfs gather within its walls, confident the impregnable fortress is in no real danger. When Gazbag uses his amplified magic to blast a hole in the impossibly thick wall surrounding the city, the Dwarfs are dumbstruck. Never before has an invading army broken through the perimeter of Karak Eight Peaks. As a wave of snarling, bellowing greenskins pours through the breach, the dour but determined defenders of the doomed city prepare to make a last stand.

The news spreads like a shockwave. How could one tribe of greenskins capture the seemingly impenetrable fortress? Though few will admit it, many Dwarfs are badly shaken by this impossible defeat. In Karaz-a-Karak, High King Thorgrim Grudgebearer vows revenge, commanding every Dwarf in the city to make preparations for a great war.

Privately, the High King is gravely concerned. Rumors that the greenskin forces are led by a Warboss with the strength of ten Orcs and a Shaman with magical abilities never before seen would not normally concern him, as Dwarfs are prone to exaggerate. However, the fall of Karak Eight Peaks cannot be ignored, nor can its effect on the morale of his people. Secretly, the High King dispatches a rider to the Empire to alert Karl Franz of the possible danger to his own lands should the Dwarfs fail to halt the greenskin invasion. Though the High King is too proud to ask the Emperor for help, he hopes the urgency of his message will result in just that.

Meanwhile, far to the south, Squig riders and Boar Boyz set out in all directions from Karak Eight Peaks, spreading word of a great Waaagh! gathering at the fortress. Legions of Orcs and Goblins begin streaming into the captured stronghold and the lands surrounding it. Each Orc and Goblin Boss pays homage to Grumlok and Gazbag, pledging his "ladz" to the destruction of the Dwarfs.

On both sides, great armies are assembled. The Dwarfs are determined to retake Karak Eight Peaks and avenge its loss, while the greenskins care for nothing but the elimination of as many Dwarfs as possible.

Age of Reckoning: Part 4 – The Dark Powers March

Two months after the fall of Karak Eight Peaks, the High King's army sets out to drive the invading greenskins from the World's Edge Mountains. As the Dwarfs march south along the slopes of the great volcano Karag Dron, the world suddenly grows dim. In the sky above, the sun begins to darken and the landscape is bathed in an eerie, unnatural light the color of deep crimson.

From atop the tallest spire in Naggarond, Malekith watches the Chaos moon, Morrslieb, eclipse the sun. His spies in the Old World have relayed messages confirming the success of the greenskin attack on the Dwarfs. The Witch King's plans are unfolding precisely as arranged.

Far to the north, out of sight of the eyes of men, a great black warhost erupts from the tempestuous Chaos Wastes. Swarms of grotesque creatures march in ranks alongside regiments of warriors and marauders, all led by a Chaos Lord bearing the banner of Tzeentch.

In the Empire, terror and panic erupt at the sight of the red eclipse. Riots and fires break out in every district of Altdorf. The city guard is hard-pressed to contain the situation, but the eclipse soon passes and by nightfall, order is restored. The event is not forgotten, however, and many citizens of the Empire, shaken by what they believe to be an omen of terrible events to come, pack their belongings and depart their homes hoping to find shelter in the mountains to the south and east. A growing sense of doom hangs over the people of the Empire, and hope for any respite from the plague is smothered by the fearful sight of the red eclipse.

For the Dwarf army marching to reclaim the fortress at Karak Eight Peaks, the eclipse seems to confirm a dread that has been growing within them. The black sun in the crimson sky is a stinging reminder of the loss of Karak Eight Peaks to the Bloody Sun Boyz, and seems to be a symbol of the inevitable victory of the greenskin horde now gathering there. Have the last days of the Dwarfs finally come? Resigned to their doom, the grim-faced warriors trudge across the harsh, mountainous terrain.

In Altdorf, the Emperor receives the High King's message and orders several regiments into the mountains to assist the Dwarfs. Though he sorely needs the troops to secure his borders and combat the spread of anarchy in his realm, Karl Franz is honor-bound to respect the pledge made by Sigmar never to refuse aid to a Dwarf. Just then, an outrider delivers a report from the north — a great Chaos army is on the march, and will reach the Empire's borders within a week.

Assessing his deployments in Nordland and Ostland, Karl Franz realizes that the picture is desperately bleak. The plague has thinned the ranks of his armies, wreaked havoc with supply lines and decimated the morale and industry of his people. The Empire is ripe for conquest, and will fall quickly without help. The Dwarfs cannot possibly send warriors to protect the Empire. If they do not recapture the fortress at Karak Eight Peaks quickly, they might never do so again. Only the High Elves can save his people now.

Summoning his most trusted Griffon rider, the Emperor composes a letter beseeching the ruler of the High Elves for assistance. When the messenger arrives in Lothern, Finubar, Phoenix King of Ulthuan, is already well aware of the Empire's plight and has been making preparations to send troops. Finubar summons Prince Tyrion, a warrior and general without peer among his people, and charges him with the defense of the High Elf lands. Confident that his realm will be secure , the Phoenix King sets sail at the head of a flotilla of Elven warships. From the Straits of Lothern the vessels pass into the Great WesternOcean carrying hundreds of the most skilled warriors among the High Elves. When word of the Phoenix King's departure reaches Malekith's ears, the Witch King gives the order to begin the invasion of Ulthuan.

In the dead of night, a great fleet of Black Arks sets out from Naggaroth. As the floating fortresses approach the shores of Ulthuan, the invasion force splits in two, with one half bearing down on the Blighted Isles while the other steers south for the Straits of Lothern. Soon, legions of Dark Elf warriors spill forth onto the shores of their ancestral homeland.

In Karak Eight Peaks, a great greenskin Waaagh! is building. In the northern reaches of the Empire, the servants of Tzeentch have already marched deep into Ostland and are laying waste to everything in their path. Prince Tyrion's army has raced north to engage the marauding Dark Elves, only to learn that a second invasion force has begun a siege of Lothern.

Recognizing that the only way to counter the threats arrayed against them will be to combine their strengths, the leaders of the Empire and the nations of the Dwarfs and the High Elves convene a great Council of Wisdom in the Imperial capital of Altdorf. At this summit, the three rulers forge a pact that their peoples shall fight as one and strike back at the enemies who would conquer their homelands.

The Age of Reckoning has begun.

Source: Official Site

The Great Armies of Order and Destruction

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:50:36 +0000

In the realm of Warhammer Online, you find yourself thrown into a world torn apart by warfare where two allied forces battle to gain the upper hand over their foes and conquer the realm one corpse at a time. When you first create your character you will be given the choice of either being on the side of Order and creating a character from one of their three member armies or join the side of Destruction and be born into one of their evil armies instead. The two factions are comprised of three allied armies each and each army has it's own unique set of career paths that are unique to their army and faction.

Below is a breakdown of the two opposing armies in this titanic struggle in this Age of Reckoning!

The forces of Order are comprised of the following armies.

High Elf Army

Dwarf Army

The (Human) Empire Army

The forces of Destruction are comprised of the following armies.

Greenskin Army IGoblins and Orcs)

Dark Elf Army

The (Human) Chaos Army

So the question before you is: In Warhammer: Age of Reckoning, which side will you choose?

Realm vs Realm Warfare in Warhammer Online

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:38:23 +0000

The realms of Order and Chaos in WAR have managed to secure total solidarity among their ranks. The result: Players can focus on their goals of enemy-realm conquest without having to worry about being stabbed in the back. This is an important aspect of WAR’s Player vs. Player combat system, which we call, “RvR”.

Looking at the map, you will notice areas enclosed by red borders. These are RvR areas where you and your enemies can converge in total warfare. Each zone has an RvR area and near each are two Warcamps (one for each realm) which serve as staging areas.

When you enter an RvR area, you will receive a message informing you of this. Ten seconds later, you will be flagged for RvR (this status is denoted by a red WAR insignia on your character portrait.) This flag allows you to attack and be attacked by players of the enemy realm. This flag is only removed after you leave the RvR area AND the RvR timer runs down, so even if your opponent flees at the sight of you, you can still pursue and destroy him!

The rewards for RvR in WAR are many—items, money, renown, influence and experience are all yours for the taking! Currently, Renown is gained by killing enemy players , completing Scenarios and by capturing/defending objectives. Rewards for earning Renown points range from new abilities available from Renown Trainers to items available from Renown Merchants. Please Note: The defeated player does not lose any items upon being looted.

Within each of these RvR areas are Battlefield Objectives. You can claim the objective by right-clicking it and waiting until the timer runs down. Once you have claimed the objective, you must defend it as the capture timer runs down. After you have successfully captured the Battlefield objective, you are granted Renown.

• Tier 1 BOs grant 400 Renown per capture
• Tier 2 BOs grant 600 Renown per capture
• Tier 3 BOs grant 800 Renown per capture
• Tier 4 BOs grant 1000 Renown per capture

Capturing Battlefield Objectives also grants 5% Renown bonus per Objective owned to the entire zone. Anytime you gain Renown in open field battles, you will get more Renown based on how many Battlefield Objectives you own.

Defending a Battlefield Objective will also grant Renown. An Objective is considered defended when there are no more enemy player kills within the area of a Battlefield Objective after 60 seconds. You will earn at least 50 Renown from defending an Objective if you’ve killed at least 1 player in its defense.

Skirmish and Battlefield RvR
Skirmish RvR is the foundational system that all other RvR within WAR is built on. Skirmish is simply the rules governing basic RvR fighting, including entry rules, combat rules and rewards. Skirmish RvR offers open field battles between potentially unbalanced forces within a well defined, yet open RvR space located persistently within the game world.
Battlefield RvR is a mechanism used to define hotspots and target areas within Skirmish RvR. These hotspots are areas that help to guide conflict within the Skirmish by giving objectives with rewards granted to the side that completes them.

RvR Scenarios
Scenarios are timed score-based battles between opposing realms. Doing various things within the Scenarios will give your Realm points. The Realm with the most points at the end of the Scenario wins. Scenarios have a population cap. For this phase of beta, the ranges are 12-on-12 to 18-on-18. Within the Scenarios, Realms are represented by colors. Red is Destruction. Blue is order. White is neutral.

Completing Scenarios, win or lose, grants you Renown depending on your Score in the Scenario. Winners also get Renown on top of the Renown granted from their Score.

Cities RvR (Contested)
Once the Fortress has fallen, the City is open for capture.

When the City goes into a contested state, it will become an instance. Players inside the City when this occurs will be given a message asking them to either stay and fight, or go to safe ground. Players that choose to stay are placed in the Warquarters of Altdorf. Players that choose to go to safety are placed in Reikwald (the Fortress Zone). Players not in the city enter the Contested version of Altdorf by going through the main gate or alternate gates. Once inside, players are in a safe spawn location behind three gates. They may right click the gate to be teleported to the other side and begin the assault or defense of the City’s Warquarters.
Control over the City is determined by battling over seven objectives in the Warquarters of Altdorf. Gaining control over these objectives will work via population disparity mechanics. The more players in the area of a capture location, the faster the capture will be.

Each Capture location will contribute points over time to a “Meta Pool”. The “Meta Pool” tallies points from across all instances of the City. Population ratios are in place to ensure that instances with possibly imbalanced numbers will contribute differently than instance with even numbers.
Simply controlling over the seven objectives in your instance will not result in winning. Players must maintain control and continue feeding the “Meta Pool” until it reaches the predetermined amount of points. This results in winning control over the City.

The Zone Control Bar will display how well your Realm is doing as a race towards the center of the Control Bar. If the forces of Order defend the City, the City will remain in its Contested state for two hours before resetting back to the standard Altdorf. The Campaign will then reset. If the forces of Destruction take the City, it will be open for pillaging!

For a breakdown of the opposing forces in Warhammer Online, click here

Keeps and Sieges in Warhammer Online

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:37:20 +0000

Keeps
Keeps are a focal point of pride for your Realm and worth the battle to defend or capture them.

Keep Basics
There is at least one keep per realm, per zone in all Tier pairings except for Tier One. Tier Two zones have one keep each (two per pairing). Tier Four zones have two keeps each for a total of six keeps. Keeps are the most important objectives in open field RvR, and can swing the tide of Zone Control in an instant if you don’t defend them!

Capturing Keeps is quite simple: kill the Keep Lord. After you have successfully captured the Keep, you are granted Renown.
Tier 2 Keeps grant 700 Renown per capture
Tier 3 Keeps grant 900 Renown per capture
Tier 4 Keeps grant 1100 Renown per capture

Capturing Keeps also grant Items from the Lord similar to Public Quests.

Defending a Keep will also grant Renown. A Keep is considered defended when there are no more enemy player kills within the area of a Keep after 60 seconds. You will earn at least 50 Renown from defending a Keep if you’ve killed at least one player in its defense.

Siege Weapons
Siege weapons are being introduced in this phase of beta on a limited basis. The following weapons will be available for use in Tier 3 and Tier 4:

Dark Elf Ballista
High Elf Ballista
Empire Hell Cannon
Greenskin Orcapult
Empire Boiling Oil – will be available to Destruction players as placeholder weapons
Empire Ram – will be available to Destruction players as placeholder weapons

Keeps and surrounding areas will have several locations where Siege weapons can be deployed and used by players. Some siege weapons will simply work by interacting with them for a period of time to damage pre-determined targets (such as a door).

There are three types of Siege Weapons:
Rams are used against Keep Doors or other pre-selected targets.
Ballistae are used against individual players or other Siege Weapons doing single target damage.
Cannons/Trebuchets are aimed to fire at a selected location, doing splash damage to players or other Siege Weapons.

Players who have a high armor rating will be able to withstand Siege weapon attacks better than players with little to no armor.

Siege Weapons must be built on Siege Pads found in the world or on Keeps. These are the only locations players can create/deploy Siege Weapons. Furthermore, Siege Weapons cannot be moved once placed, although they can rotate.

Siege weapons do not require a Trade-skill to build and can be deployed by anyone. They are purchased from the War Camps or from an NPC inside the Keeps. Once purchased, a siege weapon will take up a single inventory space. These items have no weight, and can be carried and traded by anyone. Players can carry as many siege weapons as they want, as long as they have space in their inventory. When a player deploys a siege weapon, the item will disappear from the player’s inventory.

A siege weapon purchased in a higher Tier cannot be placed on a lower tier Siege Pad. Only one Siege Weapon can be on a Siege Pad. Siege Weapons decay to 0 hitpoints after 10 minutes if not repaired, or until destroyed once they are deployed.

Siege “Pads”
Siege Pads are pre-set location on which Siege Weapons can be deployed. They are physically represented in the world as large slabs of concrete, slate, or otherwise engraved pads. Keeps will have one Siege pad per destructible door for placing Rams (for the attackers) and several pads for Ballistae and Cannons/Trebuchets on the Bastions (for the defenders). The surrounding area of a keep will have several locations to place ranged weapons. The amount of Siege Pads placed will depend upon Game-play testing and terrain. To place a Siege Weapon on a Siege Pad, players simply right click on the pad to open an interface window. The window will display the siege weapons available to the player to be placed on the pad. Only one person can interact with the Siege Pad at a time.

Only tier appropriate Siege Weapons can be deployed on Siege Pads. Tier One Siege Pads cannot house Tier Two, Three, or Four Siege Weapons.

Players have the ability to destroy and repair Siege Pads. Siege Pads can only be destroyed by Ballista, Cannon/Catapult fire, or by beating on them with weapons and spells. Siege Pads have very few hit points but respawn after five minutes.

Siege Weapon Control
Gaining control of a Siege Weapon is done by right clicking on the Siege Weapon once it is built. Interacting with the Siege Weapon will give one player control of the Weapon. Releasing control of a Siege Weapon is done by moving away from the weapon, or simply closing the UI.

Rams
Rams are large siege engines used to batter down doors. Up to four players can be seated on a Ram. When players control a Ram, they are seated on the Ram itself and no longer have control of walking movement. To release control of the Ram a player may right click on it or click the Release button on the UI. If a player right clicks on the Ram and it has less than four players on it, the player will be put on the Ram. If the Ram already has four people on it, the player will receive the message “This Ram is full and cannot be operated by any more players”.

The number of players on the Ram determines the damage dealt by the Ram. It is broken into 25% increments. If the Ram has one person, it does 25% of its maximum potential damage. If it has three people, it will do 75% of its maximum potential damage.

Ballistae (Direct Fire)
Ballistae are large bolt throwers used to skewer an enemy player or destroy Siege Weapons. They are mounted on rotating platforms on the Siege Pads to allow for precise aiming and inflict massive amounts of damage to a single target.

When using the Ballista, players will go into a “sniper mode” screen that functions similar to a riflescope. Moving the mouse controls where the reticule aims (note that camera controls on the Y axis are inverted). When a legitimate target is available, the reticule will turn read and begin to draw inward. The closer the crosshairs are to the center, the more accurate (and more damage) the ballista shot will do. Moving the aiming reticule will cause the crosshairs to snap outward, reducing accuracy.

Catapults and Cannons (Indirect fire)
Catapults and Cannons are Siege Weapons use a very simple User Interface at this time for firing and aiming. One player controls the Siege Weapon and it is placed on a rotating platform so it can turn to face its relative target. Right clicking on a Catapult or Cannon will give the player control and bring up the User Interface to repair, fire, and aim. Clicking on the Fire button will bring up the AE fire mode which takes into account Wind (changes each time you fire) and velocity. Velocity is controlled by scrolling the mouse-wheel up or down. Yaw is handled by moving the mouse left or right. When you’re ready to fire, simply click the left mouse button.

Tier 4 Campaign
When a zone is captured, the contested zone will shift from one zone to another, all the way up to the Fortress zones that defend the Cities of Altdorf and the Inevitable City. When the campaign shifts to another zone in Tier 4, all Scenarios, Battlefield Objectives and Keeps in the zone that was captured will be locked and unavailable. Players that complete Scenarios in the zone that was captured will have their points contribute to the now contested zone. If players continue to Skirmish fight in uncontested zones, the points from these kills will not contribute to the Campaign.

Fortress Zones
Fortress Zones are last zones before a City. They have three gates that protect the inner Fortress. Siege Pads are available for the attackers and defenders to place Siege Weapons. Any gate can be broken down to gain entry into the Fortress walls.

Once inside the Fortress walls, a single structure must be broken into. The front door as well as two rear entryways into the Fortress can be broken down.

A Public Quest runs the zone and the campaign. Players must kill the Fortress Lord within 60 minutes in order to enter the city. The battle moves to the City if the players succeed in killing the Fortress Lord.

To deny the attackers’ entry to the City, players must defend the Fortress Lord for 60 minutes. The Campaign will reset back to Praag if the Fortress Lord is successfully defended.

Skills and Abilities in Warhammer

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:34:53 +0000

Skills and Abilities

You have three kinds of abilities: Actions, Morale and Tactics.

Morale skills are your super duper charge-up abilities; these can make or break a fight.

Tactics are beneficial effects that are always on and can affect almost anything you might do.

Please Note: Grayed out icons denote that some requirement of the ability has not yet been met, or that the cooldown timer has not yet run down. Icons with red numbers mean that the target is out of range.

Action abilities include a wide range of attacks, heals, buffs, debuffs, etc. and are used from your QuickBar.

Morale abilities are powerful “charge up” abilities. Morale is gained by being in combat, and once you have gained enough Morale to use your ability, you can click its icon to activate it. However, once you’ve used a Morale ability, you’ll need to build more morale in order to use another one.

Tactics are enhancements that help you fight the way YOU want to. Are you going to charge headfirst into battle, or sneak around and stab your enemies in the back?

The number of available slots for tactics will increase as you level up.

Crafting are Tradeskill abilities. There are three gathering skills: Butchering, Scavenging, Cultivating, and one crafting skill: Apothecary. Please note, this is all that is currently in game during BETA.

Players can choose just one gathering skill and one crafting skill.

To train new abilities, you’ll need to visit your trainer. As you level up, you’ll need to go to higher Warcamps to be able to train new abilities.

Chat Channels in Warhammer Online

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:32:17 +0000

Chat Channels

Chat Channels make it easy to communicate with your party, your guild, nearby people, as well as everyone on the battlefield. With them, you can send messages to a targeted group of people to plan your strategies, talk to your group, warband, local area, or simply reminisce about old conquests and classic kills

Chat Channels are accessed via slash commands. So, if you want to talk to your guildmates in Guild Chat, type “/gu”, which will automatically change the chat buffer to reflect you are entering text into the Guild Chat channel. /p is for yoru party chat, a change from the more typical /g in other MMO's out there.

Questing in Warhammer Online

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:23:17 +0000

There are two types of quests in Warhammer: Age of Reckoning, Personal and Public Quests.

Personal Quests can take any form but often involve killing things (sometimes other players), going places, or delivering items or messages to other NPC’s. They pay well in items and experience, so get out your traveling gear, and get a leg on.

When you are playing Warhammer, any NPC with a little circle above their head with the image of a rolled up scroll in it is a quest giver NPC. Now when you find an NPC that is needed to complete a quest, you will see a similar circle above their head but this time it has a check mark basically.

note: In Warhammer: Age of Reckoning, when you hover your mouse over the quest entry on the right side of your UI, the popup will let you know which NPC you need to talk to in order to complete the quest you are mousing over..

Another thing to note, any time you mouse over an NPC and the pointer turns into a comic book style text caption image, you can talk to that NPC by simply right clicking on them. That same mouse over pointer change can also show a sword which means that NPC can be attacked and a little hand image that you right click to grab / collect on the item you are pointing at.

Public quests are quests that everyone in the area can participate in at the same time. For instance, in the first public quest for Chaos, “Ruinous Powers”, the Sorcerers of Tzeentch are performing a dark ritual to summon a great beast of change. To finish the quest, players need to kill 25 meddling Thorshafn Militiamen. Each Militiaman that is killed advances the counter. Your reward when the quest is completed is based on how many of the 25 Thorshafn Militiamen were killed by you.

Many of the public quests are done in stages. For instance, in “Ruinous Powers”, once you have killed the 25 Thorshafn Militiamen, players will need to harvest souls from tombstones to bolster the power of the dark ritual. When you’ve harvested the correct amount of souls, a demon of dark power emerges, and you must prove the Raven Host’s supremacy over all other ruinous powers by defeating the denizen of rage.

When you enter an area where a public quest is underway, a message is displayed in the center of your screen. Progress of public quests is displayed in the top right of the UI. The Public quests are a blast and are in an odd sort of way a method for people that are not guilded to get involved in multi group play and get better rewards potentially. There us also supposedly a bonus to xp for completing these public quests for the first time each… worth your effort folks.

DING! Character Advancement in Warhammer

Lifebane — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 07:21:02 +0000

EA had the following summary on hwo advancement works in Warhammer: Age of Reckoning. If you are an avid experienced MMO Player, none of this is really anything new, but always good to confirm that the rules haven't really changed.

Advancing Your Character

Everyone starts out at Rank 1. As you do quests and kill things, you gain experience. As xperience accrues, your rank increases and you start to learn some of the ins and outs of your career. As you gain ranks new abilities will become available to you and your character will increase in power naturally.

Your character can be advanced and customized in a number of ways in addition to gaining Ranks, abilities, or new weapons and armor.

Morale
Morale abilities are powerful effects that require you to engage in combat for a period of time as you gain Morale. When you use a Morale ability any Morale you've built up is lost. There are four ranks of Morale Abilities. Rank 4 Morale abilities require the maximum Morale possible (100%) but can be devastating to your opponents. Players unlock their first Morale ability at Rank 8.

Tactics
Tactics are passive abilities that can be combined with other tactics to enhance your natural abilities. As your gain ranks you unlock more slots to use additional Tactics at the same time. In addition, you can save different sets of Tactics for use in specific situations. Players unlock their first Tactic ability at Rank 11.

Career Masteries -General Overview
Career Mastery will allow players focus on different facets of their career giving them the opportunity to differentiate themselves from others, while still making sure that every character, no matter how they're specialized, can still perform the basic and fundamental purpose of their career. For example, every Sword Master will be an able tank, capable of absorbing much more damage than a lighter fighter. However someone who specializes in the Sword Master’s defensive path will find that they are generally more durable, able to hold aggro better in PvE and able to defend their friends more efficiently in an RvR scenario. Meanwhile a Sword Master who chooses to go a more offensive route will still be able to take a hit, but may find themselves hard pressed to defend & protect as well as their counterpart, admittedly they will be hitting quite a bit harder as a trade off. To begin at the most basic layer, every player will have four grouping of skills: Core skills and skills that fall under one of three different Paths of Mastery. The Core skills include a small handful of abilities which are simply critical to the career (to continue the example above, a Swordmaster would find that their Taunt and Guard abilities are Core).

These Core skills automatically improve as you gain ranks; once you learn them, they won't require any further investments. Moving beyond that, each career will have three paths available to Master, each of which emphasizes one specific facet of the career's abilities. While the Core skills represent a more automatic progress, the pathed skills are heavily player-controlled.

Each Mastery contains Base skills, Supplemental skills, and also has its own Mastery level. Base skills are the Actions, Tactics & Morale a player is granted as a reward for achieving a specific level, every character of that Career will always be able to purchase these skills, however their total effectiveness is intimately tied to the player’s level of Mastery. Supplemental Skills are the Actions, Tactics, and Morale that a player can only unlock by increasing their Mastery of a given path, like Base skills Supplemental skills continue to increase in effectiveness as you’re Mastery level increases. The Mastery level itself is the current amount of Mastery a player has in a particular path, players will be able to choose just how much Mastery they desire in each of the three paths available to them.

Earning Skills & Increasing Mastery
Skills can be earned in one of two ways Base skills are unlocked when you achieve a specific rank then purchased at your trainer, players can choose to skip a Base skill if they desire but there is no good reason to do so. Supplemental skills however are only unlocked once you reach a certain Mastery level, once unlocked a player has to choose to spend points to purchase these skills. This is a difficult choice because the same points used to purchase Supplemental skills are used to increase Mastery level. These points are referred to as specialization points, and are earned every rank, a player will never have enough Specialization points to completely Master multiple paths while purchasing Supplemental skills. It is a tough choice because every point of Mastery earned improves EVERY action in that mastery line by a small amount this includes the Base Skills you automatically get. One level of Mastery can seem trivial however they add up and 5 or 10 points of Mastery makes a significant difference!

There is some amount of automatic leveling of power for skills in the paths outside of their Mastery. This is done to make sure the ability is not completely useless to the player, in fact many abilities may still be useful for secondary effects such as Stun even if they have horrible damage/healing values because their Mastery level is lower. When comparing the general power of an ability of a path with 100% Mastery and one with 0% Mastery you will see around a 30 – 35% difference in power. Remember this number can be improved (or widened) further depending on which Tactics and Stats you focus on as well.