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Nearing its sixth-year anniversary, Sony's massive multiplayer online
game EverQuest still has another expansion ready to hit store
shelves. The ninth of the game's numerous expansions, it comes at an
interesting moment in time. The sequel to EverQuest has already hit
store shelves, yet there is still a decently-sized community populating the
original. With new content, worlds, and interface options, those
players who purchase EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath will find the
changes welcome.
As the title might imply, the plot attached to this expansion revolves
heavily around dragons. The lands in and surrounding the realms of
Lavastorm and Havas are thrown into the spotlight as players must follow the
trail of new quests when a new age emerges–the Age of War. As the
world of Norrath is thrown into a large-scale conflict between good and evil,
players must follow familiar heroes and villains as they search the lands
for the ancient Nest. The Nest, which is the ancient birthplace of the
dragons, was sealed away eons ago, and must be discovered and unleashed once
again. But players must beware–if the Nest is unsealed too early,
calamity and death will ensue and the dragons will be cursed for all
eternity.
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"Most changes being implemented involve the interface of EverQuest itself."
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With new areas to explore comes new quests, new monsters, and
naturally, new treasures. Goblins and fierce drakes have been added to the
monster list. Of course, mighty dragons are also part of the new additions.
Other new bits of content include new Tradeskills recipes, and new spells
for magic wielding characters, with which to whomp said dragons.
New content aside, most of the changes being implemented involve the
interface of EverQuest itself.
For players who get lost easily, an entirely new map system has
been put into place, so players can switch between the traditional line
maps, and various world and continent maps with an easy point and click
interface. Players who are in a pinch can make use of a newly
implemented potion belt, which allows potions and magical items to be used rapidly and with less fuss.. If players have multi-skilled characters or weapons suited
for many situations, they will be able to make use of the Bandolier equipment
system to switch smoothly from one set of weapons to another, for whatever
the occasion demands. Finally, for the players who wish for a better way to
trade with other players, a new automatic bartering system has been created
to smooth out the process and make acquiring that dream item much
easier.
Guild members can look forward to large bonuses in the new Guild Halls.
These are convenient areas for members of a guild to chat, form parties with
and prepare for playing. Guild Halls include several features for
different occasions. A health and mana regeneration pool can be used to
heal up for battle, and in the event that the battle was not a success, an
altar is available for mass-summoning corpses of guild members. New guild
banks can be used to store items with access given to all members, or items
can be put on hold for specific users or guild officers. Other additions
are guild portals that allow members to purchase quick and easy access to
predetermined locations, and tradeskill objects available in the guild hall.
If players are not in a guild, and are eager to seek out a piece of the
action, semi-permanent ads can be placed on bulletin boards that advertise
guilds, and send messages to players who fulfill the criteria, asking them
to join. The "Guild Seeking Members" tool comes paired with a "Player
Seeking Guild" tool, so players can also search for guilds who are
recruiting members and the criteria required.
Overall, for the current players of EverQuest, Dragons of
Norrath will bring many efficient interface changes, as well as fresh
content to explore and interact with. Players who are willing to shell out
for this expansion may find their stay in Norrath to be much more
pleasant.
Overall, for the current players of EverQuest, Dragons of Norrath will bring many interface changes, as well as fresh content to explore and interact with. Players who are willing to shell out for this expansion can find it when it arrives on store shelves on February 15.
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