Potions can be very useful in game, at least in my experience. Most of the beginner potions are going to add +10 to a stat for 5-10 minutes. If you compare that to level 5 gear, you're talking about being able to add a bonus comparable to two or three pieces of armor that all buff the same stat. Want to heal? Beginner potions will give you a quick recharge of +250 hp if you know where to get the materials. Overall it appears that Mythic intends apothecary to be the number one utility crafting skill. If you don't want to invest a lot of time in raising it, you don't have to: every merchant who sells apothecary supplies sells enough materials for you to grind out restoration potions.
What you need:
Every potion has 3 basic components. First you have to have some sort of container. The basic container is a used glass vial, which costs 5 brass at a vendor. You also need a main ingredient, these can be purchased at a basic vendor as well. Vendors in the low-level towns will have elvish parsley for recovery (heal over time potion) and bear claws for strength. There are also some intelligence materials I believe. Bear in mind that as you progress in level, the quality and type of ingredients vendors provide will change. Finally, you have three slots where you can add additional components. When first starting out, don't waste your time adding anything other than cloudy water. Again: until you get your skill to 25 adding anything other than cloudy water to your potions is a waste of materials that will be helpful later. Simply put, you don't yet have the skill to make more than one potion at a time, and you don't have the materials to make potions that last longer than 5 minutes.
How to get it:
There are two gathering skills that contribute items usable as a main ingredient. Butchering will give you main ingredients as well as some ingredients with varying miscellaneous effects (stabilizing effects appear to be the most common). Cultivating will allow you to grow plants and fungi which can then be used to create potions. Which is better? Well each has its benefits. Butchering is great because if you know where an animal spawns you have an unlimited supply of an ingredient, provided you are willing to farm long enough to build up your stock. However, butchering's strength is also its main weakness: you have to have animals to butcher, which means higher-level components will not be available right away, even if your skill would be high enough to harvest them. Cultivation is the more peaceful alternative to butchering. I've found that every monster component has an equivalent plant. But it's worth noting that each skill point you want to raise in cultivation will take approximately 90 seconds. Butchering an animal has a duration of 5 seconds. This means that while cultivation requires nothing other than seeds, it takes much much longer to raise skill in cultivation compared to butchering. However as far as I can tell butchering has nearly nothing to contribute to dyes; I am reluctant to comment any further on this because my experience with dye-making is non-existent.
How to get good potions quickly:
Here's how I did it, which may not be the best way, but it got me to making some good potions after about 15 minutes of skill-raising. First off, you're not going to be able to use any green ingredient you have until your skill is at least 25 (this may change, I'll explain more later). Your best bet for getting skill from 1 to 25 is to simply figure out what potion will benefit you most from the ingredients available at the vendor, and then just get enough materials to make this potion 25 times. Remember you only need the main ingredient, a used glass vial and some cloudy water at this point. After buying 25 of these three items, open up your skills by pressing 'V', then select apothecary from the top of the alphabetized list under the general skills tab (it's the hammer icon on the far right).
The Apothecary Screen:
As you can see, apothecary is pretty intuitive once you know where to get ingredients. The screen has 5 slots, with each one clearly marked as to what goes there. On the right side is a little bar which you can pretty much ignore. What you want to pay attention to is the text at the bottom which will read one of three things: 1. This potion is unstable (will definitely fail) 2. This potion is volatile (may succeed) 3. This potion is stable (will definitely succeed). At this point, every potion you make will be volatile. That's okay, because that's the best you can do with only cloudy water**.
Here's where WAR crafting deviates from other MMOs you may be familiar with. As far as I can tell, each main ingredient has a set 'stability value'. If the items you have in your three additional slots do not provide enough stability to meet that required 'stability value', any attempted potion with that ingredient will always fail no matter how many times you try. As a correlate to this, any potion which is volatile but succeeds will always succeed and produce a potion.
**: Volatile potions have a small disclaimer stating that they may produce a negative effect, but at the time of this writing the chance of this happening is negligible enough for it to be ignored. I have used scores of volatile potions, and have yet for one to backfire and produce a negative effect.
Showing posts with label Warhammer General Guides. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Warhammer General Guides. Show all posts
Sep 17, 2008
Sep 3, 2008
Warhammer The Melee DPS Survival Guide
Welcome to the MDPS survival guide! The current version is beta version 0.3.0, for Warhammer Closed Beta patch 3.3. This guide will be regularly updated as new relevant information is made available.
This guide exists to help users of the Melee Damage (MDPS) archetype, which includes the White Lion, Witch Hunter, Marauder, and Witch Elf classes, gain a better understanding of how "Pick Up Groups" (PUGs), which are unorganized groups of players, function and how to be successful within one of those groups. Users will find plenty basic tips and strategies that have been successfully tested and used on the battlefield. Users will not find comprehensive mathematical breakdowns and exact strategies for each class.
It has always been my hope and sincerest wish that users of this guide learn something and become better players. I hope you, the reader, enjoy this guide and do, in fact, learn something!
The Types of Combat
In Warhammer Online, and indeed most MMOs in general, there are four basic types of "PUG" (Pick Up Group), which is to say- unorganized, combat. What I mean by unorganized is that the players on each side are a random assortment of players that don't have a set plan in mind and are often very uncoordinated. They either never gain a plan, or they have to just make it up as they go along. The four basic types of PUG combat are:
Large Group, aka "Zerg"
The term zerg refers to a race in the strategy game "Starcraft." The main tactic for this race was not getting the best units or technologies, but instead the race was all about getting as many units onto the battlefield at one time...whether the units are very effective or not. Therefore, the "zerg" has come to be a term meaning "a very large, unorganized mass of players." When in a zerg situation, MDPS are at their very weakest. It is difficult for them to cross the field and do anything meaningful before they are gunned down by the large mass of ranged players.
Medium Group
A medium group could be loosely defined as 7-18 players. This size of group will most commonly be encountered in scenarios. MDPS fair surprisingly well in this situation, as long as the player understands some basic principles. "The Flow of Battle," my original guide, as well as the chapter with the same name, address this situation.
Small Group
Approximately 2-5 players. This is when MDPS are at their strongest. MDPS typically have the damage power to kill most healers and ranged damage (RDPS) classes by themselves, and the offense threats against them are at a minimum in this situation.
Solo
1v1 combat. MDPS are very strong here as well, but don't fair as well as melee healers like Warrior-Priests and Disciples.
Basic Tips for Any Combat Situation
There are some basic things that will greatly improve your chances of success as a MDPS, no matter your combat situation.
Have a healer friend.
This is listed first for a reason! Cherish them as much as they should cherish you. In a tier 1 game having a healer would mean the difference from a game with 10 kills and 10k damage to a game of 18 kills and 35k damage. I prefer the ranged healers of any type as you can use your snare to peel enemies off them. The ranged healers also further improve your magic resistances with the appropriate buff...which is GREAT to have (always ask for resist buff over strength buff, trust me and tell them politely to use it on themselves!). Don't underestimate the power of having a melee healer with you though (especially if they have a tank friend to guard them!). Their armor buff is extremely helpful.
Know your enemy.
First, know that your biggest enemy is other melee. You have light or medium armor with only about 25% damage mitigation. A defensive tank gets up to 70% mitigation, an offensive tank 45%ish mitigation. That's a big difference! Second: know that ranged healers stand no chance against you. Last, know that if you start a fight in melee range against an RDPS, it's pretty much over for them as well.
Know thyself.
You're mainly a skirmisher...a caster killer. You're not built to stay on the front lines like a tank. Get in, get your kill, and get out if you're going to take hits.
Situational Awareness
This is basically being aware of your surroundings. Very often it is wise to pan your camera around to check if you're about to be flanked, or what your enemy is about to do. Don't get too caught up in the frenzy of battle.
Stick Together
Never run strait into the zerg unless all the melee run in together. You will get tab targeted and focused down unless there are other melee (especially a shield tank) to absorb part of the damage for you. Running in all together is very effective, but takes some coordination that most pug groups aren't willing to display.
Gear and Statistics
For a list of formulas regarding gear and statistics, reference here.
The most important stats on gear, in my personal preference order (I say it this way because it's bound to be debated), are:
Resists - You're a caster killer, and they don't like to see you coming! Resists are very important for your survival. Even the "physical" ranged damage: Shadow Warriors, Engineers, and Squig Herders, are equipped with a number of skills that are based on resists. Do not spend RPs on increasing resists though. All your resists should come through gear and buffs from friends.
Armor - Realistically, armor is soft capped by the type you wear and so increasing it isn't always possible. Still, you want armor as your biggest enemy is other melee. Having a melee healer (Warrior-Priest or Disciple) in your group that runs the armor buff helps significantly. I would not spend your RPs on increasing armor, increase it through gear or buffs from friends.
Strength - You're a damage class. Strength improves your damage. Makes sense! But wait Duty, I'm a Witch Hunter and have ranged skills, shouldn't I stack Ballistic? No. WHs have a very high base Ballistic skill. Mythic gave them this so their stat spread wouldn't be too crazy. Stack strength as a Witch Hunter just as you would other classes. Strength is where the majority of RPs should be spent.
Toughness - Per point, in my opinion, resists/armor offer a lot more survivability increase, but you can only get so much of those. Toughness is the next best survivability stat. For AoE-focused character builds, I'd recommend stacking toughness equally or in preference with strength. These builds tend to do well in large situations with healers to support the MDPS. Because you will be taking so much damage in these situations, toughness becomes more vital. Toughness is where your secondary RPs should be spent.
Initiative - Lowering your chance to be crit is nice, but still won't have as much effect as other defensive stats. Dodge chance is nice to have to avoid the crowd control and damage skills of shadow warriors, squig herders, engineers, and witch hunters. A note: the point-blank area of effect root of Shadow Warriors, Squig Herders, and Engineers is considered a ranged skill, and so is dodged, not parried.
Weapon Skill - The armor penetration is not as significant as you might think. First, you're killing casters, they don't have a lot of armor (and armor does not work logarithmically like it does in other games...it's a flat increase, so armor penetration is more useful against high armor targets due to hitting the "penetration cap" on lower armored targets). Melee is your biggest enemy, but you are trying to avoid them, and armor is a natural defense against them that doesn't eat stat budget (stat budget refers to what stats you spend on your gear...you can only have so many stats and so have to choose). Weapon skill is nice to have, but you get more offensive punch out of strength, and more defensive punch out of toughness, initiative, and armor.
Willpower - Since MDPS don't heal, 1/2 this stat is worthless. The other half seems beneficial, but you don't gain enough disrupt chance to warrant stacking over other stats.
Ballistic - Mostly worthless. Helps Witch Hunters some, but Strength will net you a better DPS increase.
Intellect - Mostly worthless.
Tips for Large Group Situations
Zergs aren't easy for MDPS. In fact I'd say they're downright painful if you have a bad group or no support. Brawler types tend to fair much much better, but still are at a general disadvantage in this situation. Obviously character builds that emphasize AoE (Area of Effect...skills that hit multiple characters at a time), such as the Marauder's Monstrosity line, will fair better.
Large group situations tend not to "whittle down" to smaller and smaller groups. There are typically too many players to kill before the ones you just dispatched are already back. Splitting up to take multiple objectives, or players just logging/relocating are the only ways zergs tend to dissipate. Since you're weak at this type of combat: encourage dissipation. Go somewhere else, fight another battle. Don't play the zerg game and don't be a sheep. Even if you have to 1v1 you're in a much stronger position.
Still, if you feel you must participate in a zerg, you must know that zergs don't generally get progressively smaller, and so aren't won by killing all the players. They're won by pushes. Admittedly, it can be incredibly fun charging the line and routing your enemies even if that's more a tank's job then MDPS.
To best win the pushing, you must coordinate melee charges. You can't send 1-2 melee guys at a time as they get slaughtered. It can be difficult in a PUG to rally players to all charge at the same time...but when you do get enough to make a difference, it's quite a sight to behold as you rout the enemy and slaughter them from behind. If possible you want to stay behind tanks that are using "Hold the Line." You'll recognize it as an animation that sprays behind the tank, and he will hold his shield steadfast in front of him. He gains a 45% chance to dodge and disrupt (that is: avoid any ranged attack) while you gain 15% chance to do the same. However, you can gain the benefit up to 3 times if you stand behind 3 tanks doing it, which gives you a total of 45% to avoid any ranged attack. Hold the Line only lasts a short amount of time...it's meant to get you to the action (which by that time your enemy will probably be routing unless they have significant amounts of melee players to hide behind).
After you get to the fighting, it's pretty simple. Assist other players by focusing on 1 guy at a time to kill them faster, and don't go beyond the front line. The worst thing you can do is pass your tanks, because you'll get "tab targeted," which refers to players hitting the "target closest player" button and all focusing on you. You want to let your tanks take the damage...that's what they're there for. You try to remain as inconspicuous as possible.
If you have 2 or more ranged healing friends that are dedicated to keeping you alive, you can really rampage and flourish in a large group situation, as long as you are a brawler MDPS (marauder or white lion) that is specialized in AoEs. You can often run in and kill several players at chokepoints when you have such a support corps. Using Monstrosity spec on my Marauder, I've managed to kill 13 players near simultaneously while they came up the stairs in a Dark Elf keep. The secret is to choose your spot: a chokepoint where they're all bunched up (like stairs, a doorway or a bridge), know your AoE combos, and have help to keep you alive. When things go the right way, you'll net LOTS of kills and have a ton of fun doing so.
The Flow of Battle: Medium Group Situations
Let me start by saying that there is a very key difference in how medium group battles tend to take place from large group battles: they whittle down. What I mean is that as players die, it becomes a progressively smaller group situation. So as medium group battles carry on, MDPS get stronger and stronger.
You must use this to your advantage! I have recommended this approach because I know the power of the tab target. The biggest difference in an organized group against an unorganized one is that the organized guys are all hitting the same target to kill him faster, while unorganized guys are hitting all different ones. Tab Target turns those unorganized guys into organized ones by making sure they all target you: the melee guy who happens to be closest. I've recommended this approach so you don't get into that particularly nasty situation.
Phase 1: The Skirmish
When two armies first meet, the skirmish takes place. This is a period where each side is at full or near full strength. Ranged characters are at their best as they can safely hide behind melee types and blast away. The cardinal rule for MDPS of this stage is to stay alive. Don't take risks. Your RPDS buddies are at their strongest: so let them do their job! Let them pick away at the enemy forces from a safe distance. Your job is to use that wonderful snare that all MDPS have and help your RDPS friends stay away from the melee players that charge too early.
The more melee players from the enemy side that want to charge over, the better. Kill those foolish melee! They're your biggest enemy and the more you remove, the better your survival chances are later in the fight. Even if they're tanks, they're by far the safest thing to beat on at this stage, and with enough people focusing on them, they'll die eventually.
Don't worry, they will come to you. A true master does not chase his enemies, but lets his enemies come to him on his land...his advantage. Let their melee come (and they will), as they're easy to single out and destroy. If one of them happens to target you, run back into your group so you "overextend" him. This means you make him chase you out of range of his support: where he becomes a very easy target.
Phase 2: Fun Time!
After their melee characters are either dead or otherwise distracted away from you, it's time for you to make your move. You want to get at the casters at this stage. Try to flank or otherwise reach them without drawing attention. Stealth characters excel at this as they can cross the battlefield without drawing focus to themselves. Brawlers may be tempted to use Charge! but this is unwise. You not only want to save Charge! for retreating or catching a player that tries to escape, but it also brings attention to that fast moving White Lion blazing across the field...something you don't want.
Once behind the front lines, you should know which classes to kill first. Because the majority of their healing comes from their "big heal," which is easily pushed back when they take damage, killing ranged healers is often the easiest to do, and often enough required before you can kill anything else (they'll just keep healing it!).
If you think you can get away with it without them getting heals: kill "Glass Cannons," which are Sorceresses and Bright Wizards first. They do a TON of damage and can ruin your day if you don't take care of them. If smart ranged healers are around to prevent you from doing so, you'll have to kill the healers first.
After the ranged healers and glass cannons are dead or not present, take out "skirmishers," who are Squig Herders and Shadow Warriors. These classes have a lot of crowd control and can make life very frustrating. Taking them out makes your job easier. Last, take out the "defender RDPS," which are the engineers and mages of Tzeentch. They are the most difficult of the ranged characters to kill, and typically aren't your first choice to kill.
So the kill order tends to generally (there are exceptions that experience will teach you) look like this:
Shaman/Archmage
Zealot/Runepriest
Sorceress/Bright Wizard - First if you can get away with it
Squig Herder/Shadow Warrior
Magus/Engineer
Witch Elf/Witch Hunter
Marauder/White Lion
Disciple/Warrior-Priest
All tanks
If you succeed in not attracting attention, you should almost be guaranteed a kill. You're brutally effective when facing the enemies weakest to you while the enemies strongest against you are distracted elseware.
If you do attract attention, be ready to retreat. Where as stealthy types rely on getting there unnoticed and are good at it, brawler types tend to excel at getting out if needed. Your detaunt (that is: the skill that reduces the damage players around you deal to you), followed by Charge! if you have it, will get you out of many situations. The whole reason I personally love brawler MDPS is their 50% AoE detaunt. It's completely underestimated by new players. It has saved me from many many sticky situations.
Understand a key component to this stage: you don't want to overextend. There is still enough DPS on the field to be a threat to you if you stray from your support. No one can heal or kill the enemies attacking you if you're out of range. With few exceptions, you don't want to chase enemies back too far.
Phase 3: Small Group
At some point in the battle, one side will most likely establish itself as the clear victors and will just "mop up the rest." At this point you are generally free to overextend some (never too much though), chase down enemies, and revel in the glory of killing your enemies.
However, sometimes the sides are fairly even with only about 2-6 players left on each side. This is a time you will want to keep special considerations in mind.
First, there generally isn't enough DPS still out there to kill you before you can make it back to your support. *Some* overextending and chasing is warranted if it furthers the cause of winning the battle.
Second, you want to focus fire. Take a look who others are killing and help them. Help other DPS classes before you help tanks. If you see a Witch Elf bashing on a Runepriest, and a Black Orc hitting an Archmage, go help the Witch Elf as your combined DPS is pretty staggering.
Third, help your ranged guys by using your snare against their melee pursuers. Keep them safe: your best weapon is the guy beside you (for proof of this, calculate your current weapon vs getting the best weapon in the game for your class...figure out the gain. Will you gain double the damage or healing, double the hit points, and double the utility skills that you get from having a friend?).
Solo Battles
Solo battles are truly beyond the scope of this guide, as they are a much more exact science then groups. They depend on your class and what class you are facing more then anything, and tend to become exact blow-for-blow, counter-for-counter fights.
There are some key advantages and tips MDPS players have in solo situations though. Knowledge of which classes you can defeat and which generally defeat you is paramount. In general the melee healers, which are Warrior-Priests and Disciples, tend to be the strongest solo classes, and most of the time you'll want to avoid engaging them. Tanks also tend to be fairly tough, but most of the time will not finish you off before you can escape them if the battle goes poorly, as your escape moves tend to trump their pursuit moves.
Knowing which classes you can engage and which you can not is very important because MDPS, over any other class, have the power of selecting their engagements. Stealth and runspeed buffs (Charge!) give you that power. You're very hard to escape and you can escape very easily.
It's always beneficial to get the first blow in as well. You have a major advantage, especially against ranged characters, if you can reach them before they know you're coming. Lastly, bring friends. Two or more can always accomplish more then one solo player.
Closing
This concludes the basic training for MDPS in RvR. It may sound like a lot more work then it is, but with some practice you can become a successful player. The key is to be patient and fight on your terms...not the enemy's. Don't go chasing kills when they'll come right to you. And bring friends!
This guide exists to help users of the Melee Damage (MDPS) archetype, which includes the White Lion, Witch Hunter, Marauder, and Witch Elf classes, gain a better understanding of how "Pick Up Groups" (PUGs), which are unorganized groups of players, function and how to be successful within one of those groups. Users will find plenty basic tips and strategies that have been successfully tested and used on the battlefield. Users will not find comprehensive mathematical breakdowns and exact strategies for each class.
It has always been my hope and sincerest wish that users of this guide learn something and become better players. I hope you, the reader, enjoy this guide and do, in fact, learn something!
The Types of Combat
In Warhammer Online, and indeed most MMOs in general, there are four basic types of "PUG" (Pick Up Group), which is to say- unorganized, combat. What I mean by unorganized is that the players on each side are a random assortment of players that don't have a set plan in mind and are often very uncoordinated. They either never gain a plan, or they have to just make it up as they go along. The four basic types of PUG combat are:
Large Group, aka "Zerg"
The term zerg refers to a race in the strategy game "Starcraft." The main tactic for this race was not getting the best units or technologies, but instead the race was all about getting as many units onto the battlefield at one time...whether the units are very effective or not. Therefore, the "zerg" has come to be a term meaning "a very large, unorganized mass of players." When in a zerg situation, MDPS are at their very weakest. It is difficult for them to cross the field and do anything meaningful before they are gunned down by the large mass of ranged players.
Medium Group
A medium group could be loosely defined as 7-18 players. This size of group will most commonly be encountered in scenarios. MDPS fair surprisingly well in this situation, as long as the player understands some basic principles. "The Flow of Battle," my original guide, as well as the chapter with the same name, address this situation.
Small Group
Approximately 2-5 players. This is when MDPS are at their strongest. MDPS typically have the damage power to kill most healers and ranged damage (RDPS) classes by themselves, and the offense threats against them are at a minimum in this situation.
Solo
1v1 combat. MDPS are very strong here as well, but don't fair as well as melee healers like Warrior-Priests and Disciples.
Basic Tips for Any Combat Situation
There are some basic things that will greatly improve your chances of success as a MDPS, no matter your combat situation.
Have a healer friend.
This is listed first for a reason! Cherish them as much as they should cherish you. In a tier 1 game having a healer would mean the difference from a game with 10 kills and 10k damage to a game of 18 kills and 35k damage. I prefer the ranged healers of any type as you can use your snare to peel enemies off them. The ranged healers also further improve your magic resistances with the appropriate buff...which is GREAT to have (always ask for resist buff over strength buff, trust me and tell them politely to use it on themselves!). Don't underestimate the power of having a melee healer with you though (especially if they have a tank friend to guard them!). Their armor buff is extremely helpful.
Know your enemy.
First, know that your biggest enemy is other melee. You have light or medium armor with only about 25% damage mitigation. A defensive tank gets up to 70% mitigation, an offensive tank 45%ish mitigation. That's a big difference! Second: know that ranged healers stand no chance against you. Last, know that if you start a fight in melee range against an RDPS, it's pretty much over for them as well.
Know thyself.
You're mainly a skirmisher...a caster killer. You're not built to stay on the front lines like a tank. Get in, get your kill, and get out if you're going to take hits.
Situational Awareness
This is basically being aware of your surroundings. Very often it is wise to pan your camera around to check if you're about to be flanked, or what your enemy is about to do. Don't get too caught up in the frenzy of battle.
Stick Together
Never run strait into the zerg unless all the melee run in together. You will get tab targeted and focused down unless there are other melee (especially a shield tank) to absorb part of the damage for you. Running in all together is very effective, but takes some coordination that most pug groups aren't willing to display.
Gear and Statistics
For a list of formulas regarding gear and statistics, reference here.
The most important stats on gear, in my personal preference order (I say it this way because it's bound to be debated), are:
Resists - You're a caster killer, and they don't like to see you coming! Resists are very important for your survival. Even the "physical" ranged damage: Shadow Warriors, Engineers, and Squig Herders, are equipped with a number of skills that are based on resists. Do not spend RPs on increasing resists though. All your resists should come through gear and buffs from friends.
Armor - Realistically, armor is soft capped by the type you wear and so increasing it isn't always possible. Still, you want armor as your biggest enemy is other melee. Having a melee healer (Warrior-Priest or Disciple) in your group that runs the armor buff helps significantly. I would not spend your RPs on increasing armor, increase it through gear or buffs from friends.
Strength - You're a damage class. Strength improves your damage. Makes sense! But wait Duty, I'm a Witch Hunter and have ranged skills, shouldn't I stack Ballistic? No. WHs have a very high base Ballistic skill. Mythic gave them this so their stat spread wouldn't be too crazy. Stack strength as a Witch Hunter just as you would other classes. Strength is where the majority of RPs should be spent.
Toughness - Per point, in my opinion, resists/armor offer a lot more survivability increase, but you can only get so much of those. Toughness is the next best survivability stat. For AoE-focused character builds, I'd recommend stacking toughness equally or in preference with strength. These builds tend to do well in large situations with healers to support the MDPS. Because you will be taking so much damage in these situations, toughness becomes more vital. Toughness is where your secondary RPs should be spent.
Initiative - Lowering your chance to be crit is nice, but still won't have as much effect as other defensive stats. Dodge chance is nice to have to avoid the crowd control and damage skills of shadow warriors, squig herders, engineers, and witch hunters. A note: the point-blank area of effect root of Shadow Warriors, Squig Herders, and Engineers is considered a ranged skill, and so is dodged, not parried.
Weapon Skill - The armor penetration is not as significant as you might think. First, you're killing casters, they don't have a lot of armor (and armor does not work logarithmically like it does in other games...it's a flat increase, so armor penetration is more useful against high armor targets due to hitting the "penetration cap" on lower armored targets). Melee is your biggest enemy, but you are trying to avoid them, and armor is a natural defense against them that doesn't eat stat budget (stat budget refers to what stats you spend on your gear...you can only have so many stats and so have to choose). Weapon skill is nice to have, but you get more offensive punch out of strength, and more defensive punch out of toughness, initiative, and armor.
Willpower - Since MDPS don't heal, 1/2 this stat is worthless. The other half seems beneficial, but you don't gain enough disrupt chance to warrant stacking over other stats.
Ballistic - Mostly worthless. Helps Witch Hunters some, but Strength will net you a better DPS increase.
Intellect - Mostly worthless.
Tips for Large Group Situations
Zergs aren't easy for MDPS. In fact I'd say they're downright painful if you have a bad group or no support. Brawler types tend to fair much much better, but still are at a general disadvantage in this situation. Obviously character builds that emphasize AoE (Area of Effect...skills that hit multiple characters at a time), such as the Marauder's Monstrosity line, will fair better.
Large group situations tend not to "whittle down" to smaller and smaller groups. There are typically too many players to kill before the ones you just dispatched are already back. Splitting up to take multiple objectives, or players just logging/relocating are the only ways zergs tend to dissipate. Since you're weak at this type of combat: encourage dissipation. Go somewhere else, fight another battle. Don't play the zerg game and don't be a sheep. Even if you have to 1v1 you're in a much stronger position.
Still, if you feel you must participate in a zerg, you must know that zergs don't generally get progressively smaller, and so aren't won by killing all the players. They're won by pushes. Admittedly, it can be incredibly fun charging the line and routing your enemies even if that's more a tank's job then MDPS.
To best win the pushing, you must coordinate melee charges. You can't send 1-2 melee guys at a time as they get slaughtered. It can be difficult in a PUG to rally players to all charge at the same time...but when you do get enough to make a difference, it's quite a sight to behold as you rout the enemy and slaughter them from behind. If possible you want to stay behind tanks that are using "Hold the Line." You'll recognize it as an animation that sprays behind the tank, and he will hold his shield steadfast in front of him. He gains a 45% chance to dodge and disrupt (that is: avoid any ranged attack) while you gain 15% chance to do the same. However, you can gain the benefit up to 3 times if you stand behind 3 tanks doing it, which gives you a total of 45% to avoid any ranged attack. Hold the Line only lasts a short amount of time...it's meant to get you to the action (which by that time your enemy will probably be routing unless they have significant amounts of melee players to hide behind).
After you get to the fighting, it's pretty simple. Assist other players by focusing on 1 guy at a time to kill them faster, and don't go beyond the front line. The worst thing you can do is pass your tanks, because you'll get "tab targeted," which refers to players hitting the "target closest player" button and all focusing on you. You want to let your tanks take the damage...that's what they're there for. You try to remain as inconspicuous as possible.
If you have 2 or more ranged healing friends that are dedicated to keeping you alive, you can really rampage and flourish in a large group situation, as long as you are a brawler MDPS (marauder or white lion) that is specialized in AoEs. You can often run in and kill several players at chokepoints when you have such a support corps. Using Monstrosity spec on my Marauder, I've managed to kill 13 players near simultaneously while they came up the stairs in a Dark Elf keep. The secret is to choose your spot: a chokepoint where they're all bunched up (like stairs, a doorway or a bridge), know your AoE combos, and have help to keep you alive. When things go the right way, you'll net LOTS of kills and have a ton of fun doing so.
The Flow of Battle: Medium Group Situations
Let me start by saying that there is a very key difference in how medium group battles tend to take place from large group battles: they whittle down. What I mean is that as players die, it becomes a progressively smaller group situation. So as medium group battles carry on, MDPS get stronger and stronger.
You must use this to your advantage! I have recommended this approach because I know the power of the tab target. The biggest difference in an organized group against an unorganized one is that the organized guys are all hitting the same target to kill him faster, while unorganized guys are hitting all different ones. Tab Target turns those unorganized guys into organized ones by making sure they all target you: the melee guy who happens to be closest. I've recommended this approach so you don't get into that particularly nasty situation.
Phase 1: The Skirmish
When two armies first meet, the skirmish takes place. This is a period where each side is at full or near full strength. Ranged characters are at their best as they can safely hide behind melee types and blast away. The cardinal rule for MDPS of this stage is to stay alive. Don't take risks. Your RPDS buddies are at their strongest: so let them do their job! Let them pick away at the enemy forces from a safe distance. Your job is to use that wonderful snare that all MDPS have and help your RDPS friends stay away from the melee players that charge too early.
The more melee players from the enemy side that want to charge over, the better. Kill those foolish melee! They're your biggest enemy and the more you remove, the better your survival chances are later in the fight. Even if they're tanks, they're by far the safest thing to beat on at this stage, and with enough people focusing on them, they'll die eventually.
Don't worry, they will come to you. A true master does not chase his enemies, but lets his enemies come to him on his land...his advantage. Let their melee come (and they will), as they're easy to single out and destroy. If one of them happens to target you, run back into your group so you "overextend" him. This means you make him chase you out of range of his support: where he becomes a very easy target.
Phase 2: Fun Time!
After their melee characters are either dead or otherwise distracted away from you, it's time for you to make your move. You want to get at the casters at this stage. Try to flank or otherwise reach them without drawing attention. Stealth characters excel at this as they can cross the battlefield without drawing focus to themselves. Brawlers may be tempted to use Charge! but this is unwise. You not only want to save Charge! for retreating or catching a player that tries to escape, but it also brings attention to that fast moving White Lion blazing across the field...something you don't want.
Once behind the front lines, you should know which classes to kill first. Because the majority of their healing comes from their "big heal," which is easily pushed back when they take damage, killing ranged healers is often the easiest to do, and often enough required before you can kill anything else (they'll just keep healing it!).
If you think you can get away with it without them getting heals: kill "Glass Cannons," which are Sorceresses and Bright Wizards first. They do a TON of damage and can ruin your day if you don't take care of them. If smart ranged healers are around to prevent you from doing so, you'll have to kill the healers first.
After the ranged healers and glass cannons are dead or not present, take out "skirmishers," who are Squig Herders and Shadow Warriors. These classes have a lot of crowd control and can make life very frustrating. Taking them out makes your job easier. Last, take out the "defender RDPS," which are the engineers and mages of Tzeentch. They are the most difficult of the ranged characters to kill, and typically aren't your first choice to kill.
So the kill order tends to generally (there are exceptions that experience will teach you) look like this:
Shaman/Archmage
Zealot/Runepriest
Sorceress/Bright Wizard - First if you can get away with it
Squig Herder/Shadow Warrior
Magus/Engineer
Witch Elf/Witch Hunter
Marauder/White Lion
Disciple/Warrior-Priest
All tanks
If you succeed in not attracting attention, you should almost be guaranteed a kill. You're brutally effective when facing the enemies weakest to you while the enemies strongest against you are distracted elseware.
If you do attract attention, be ready to retreat. Where as stealthy types rely on getting there unnoticed and are good at it, brawler types tend to excel at getting out if needed. Your detaunt (that is: the skill that reduces the damage players around you deal to you), followed by Charge! if you have it, will get you out of many situations. The whole reason I personally love brawler MDPS is their 50% AoE detaunt. It's completely underestimated by new players. It has saved me from many many sticky situations.
Understand a key component to this stage: you don't want to overextend. There is still enough DPS on the field to be a threat to you if you stray from your support. No one can heal or kill the enemies attacking you if you're out of range. With few exceptions, you don't want to chase enemies back too far.
Phase 3: Small Group
At some point in the battle, one side will most likely establish itself as the clear victors and will just "mop up the rest." At this point you are generally free to overextend some (never too much though), chase down enemies, and revel in the glory of killing your enemies.
However, sometimes the sides are fairly even with only about 2-6 players left on each side. This is a time you will want to keep special considerations in mind.
First, there generally isn't enough DPS still out there to kill you before you can make it back to your support. *Some* overextending and chasing is warranted if it furthers the cause of winning the battle.
Second, you want to focus fire. Take a look who others are killing and help them. Help other DPS classes before you help tanks. If you see a Witch Elf bashing on a Runepriest, and a Black Orc hitting an Archmage, go help the Witch Elf as your combined DPS is pretty staggering.
Third, help your ranged guys by using your snare against their melee pursuers. Keep them safe: your best weapon is the guy beside you (for proof of this, calculate your current weapon vs getting the best weapon in the game for your class...figure out the gain. Will you gain double the damage or healing, double the hit points, and double the utility skills that you get from having a friend?).
Solo Battles
Solo battles are truly beyond the scope of this guide, as they are a much more exact science then groups. They depend on your class and what class you are facing more then anything, and tend to become exact blow-for-blow, counter-for-counter fights.
There are some key advantages and tips MDPS players have in solo situations though. Knowledge of which classes you can defeat and which generally defeat you is paramount. In general the melee healers, which are Warrior-Priests and Disciples, tend to be the strongest solo classes, and most of the time you'll want to avoid engaging them. Tanks also tend to be fairly tough, but most of the time will not finish you off before you can escape them if the battle goes poorly, as your escape moves tend to trump their pursuit moves.
Knowing which classes you can engage and which you can not is very important because MDPS, over any other class, have the power of selecting their engagements. Stealth and runspeed buffs (Charge!) give you that power. You're very hard to escape and you can escape very easily.
It's always beneficial to get the first blow in as well. You have a major advantage, especially against ranged characters, if you can reach them before they know you're coming. Lastly, bring friends. Two or more can always accomplish more then one solo player.
Closing
This concludes the basic training for MDPS in RvR. It may sound like a lot more work then it is, but with some practice you can become a successful player. The key is to be patient and fight on your terms...not the enemy's. Don't go chasing kills when they'll come right to you. And bring friends!
Warhammer Brief Guide
The Warhammer world - a dark and dangerous place to live, full of horror and conflict. Welcome to this guide to the Warhammer world, a look at the kingdoms and races that inhabit this war-torn land.
Few races know the Warhammer World as well as the adventurous and entrepreneurial High Kindred of Elves. Their tall-masted ships ply the northern oceans between the Old World to the east and the shores of Lustria to the west. To the north the Elven seamen keep a watchful eye upon Naggaroth, the Land of Chill, which the estranged Dark Elves have made their own. To the south lie the Southlands and the Fortress of Dawn, a safe haven for many an Elven seafarer bound for distant Cathay.
Few races know the Warhammer World as well as the adventurous and entrepreneurial High Kindred of Elves. Their tall-masted ships ply the northern oceans between the Old World to the east and the shores of Lustria to the west. To the north the Elven seamen keep a watchful eye upon Naggaroth, the Land of Chill, which the estranged Dark Elves have made their own. To the south lie the Southlands and the Fortress of Dawn, a safe haven for many an Elven seafarer bound for distant Cathay.
THE OLD WORLD
Though the proud Elves have for many ages explored the world and learned much about its strange peoples, they do not reveal their secrets to lesser races. To Men these places are little more than names upon a mostly empty map. The lands they know and inhabit comprise what they call the Old World. These lands are home to Men, Dwarfs, Elves and the diminutive race of Halflings, as well as numerous evil creatures which infest the mountains and forests.
The largest and most important of the realms of Man are the Empire and Bretonnia. The Empire lies at the centre of the Old World, bounded by tall mountains and dark forests. It is the most populous by far of the Human nations and probably the most powerful too. To the south of the Empire is the Kingdom of Bretonnia, whose main strength of arms lies in its gallant knights whose tradition of chivalric virtue is held in high regard throughout the Old World.
The other Human lands are less powerful and not so strongly unified as either the Empire or Bretonnia. North of the Empire is the cold, unwelcoming land of Kislev, ruled over by its fierce warrior Tzarina. Further north still is the rocky land of Norsca, inhabited by violent and blood-thirsty savages whose raids are a constant irritation to the Tzarina and Emperor alike. South of Bretonnia are the hot, arid lands of Estalia and Tilea. Neither is united under one crown, instead they are divided into countless petty kingdoms and warring city states. Between Tilea and Bretonnia is the tiny upland region known as the Vaults, a stronghold of bandits and brigands who sometimes hire their services as mercenaries in the Emperor's armies. Beyond the immediate confines of the Old World is Araby to the south and, to the east, the bleak, forbidding Dark Lands. The Arabians are incorrigible pirates and raiders, whose dark-sailed dhows sometimes appear in the trading ports of Tilea and Estalia. The land south of Araby is known only as the Southlands. Few Old Worlders have ever glimpsed its jungle-covered coasts or the tall white mountains of its interior. The Dark Lands east of the Empire are barren and inhospitable, where Orcs, Goblins and other monsters constantly battle against each other.
SOUTH OF THE BADLANDS
To the immediate south of the Empire is the small brigand-infested land of the Border Princes. This is a dangerous region where renegades, dissenters and other refugees from the settled lands face constant predation from Orcs, Goblins and each other. Further south still are the Badlands, dominated by fierce tribes of Orcs, and beyond that lies the fabled Land of the Dead, the source of much unrest in the world.
Between the Empire and the Dark Lands is a towering mountain range whose peaks are so tall and so black that for years beyond remembering Men held the view that this must be the very edge of the world. In consequence these are called the Worlds Edge Mountains and, in truth, they form the natural eastern boundary of the Old World. These ancient peaks have been tunnelled, mined and inhabited for many centuries by the Dwarfs, a strong-minded and equally strong-armed folk whose endless wars against the Goblins of the mountains are well known even amongst Men.
THE EDGE OF THE WORLD
Listed above are the lands and races known to the scholars of humanity, to the sages of the Dwarfs, and to the wise amongst Elvenkind. To this font of common knowledge the Elves could certainly add far more if they did not guard their secrets so jealously. Doubtless too there are many learned men who could make a shrewd guess as to the further nature of the world and its perils. Perhaps they would speak of the subterranean race of Skaven and their gnawing and scheming beneath the world. Maybe they would hint darkly at the threat from the Land of the Dead and the ancient realm of its master Nagash. Then there are the deeper and more sinister secrets of Chaos and the hidden power of the north.
Sep 2, 2008
Guide to Dwarf Grudges
This is an excerpt of Pendrako's guide to Dwarf Grudges. One thing that is understood about Dwarfs is their ability to hold onto a grudge for generations. While some events pass with little notice, the recent events and the taking of Karak Eight Peaks renews many an old Grudge in every Dwarf in the Kingdom.
Of all the creatures in the world, none are more loathsome or worthy of hate than the Grobi. They are a wicked, treacherous race without morality, conscience or honour, the cause of endless woe for our people. No Karak bears a Book of Grudges that does not have many a line devoted to the actions of those foul creatures, and no Dwarf would hesitate before burying his axe in the neck of a Grobi. Every day which passes while these creatures still draw breath brings shame to us all.
Dwarfs are defined by their reverence for their past. They tirelessly construct monumental tombs in order to worship and venerate their ancestors, and great value is placed upon their oldest artefacts in order to respect the long dead craftsmen who originally fashioned them and to help preserve ancient Dwarf traditions. It is said that when Dwarfs are in any doubt as to how to proceed they look to the Dwarf with the longest beard to tell them what to do. This is invariably the wisest solution.
Dwarfs have exceedingly good memories, and live to a very great age. It is the task of any self respecting Dwarf to memorize the names of every Dwarf in their extended family going back many generations to the time their Clan was first founded by a common ancestor. Should a wrong be done to a Dwarf, it is considered to be dealt equally to their Clan and to their ancestors and their unborn descendants, and every other member of the Clan will be duty bound to avenge them. Dwarfs are a proud, stubborn race, who rarely compromise and are never seen to intentionally back down from a fight. This aspect of their character is epitomised by Dammaz Kron - the Great Book of Grudges ? a massive tome written in the blood of the High Kings which recounts all the great wrongs, unpaid debts and deeds of treachery perpetrated against the Dwarf race. Although the grudges listed in the book are occasionally avenged, Dwarfs on the whole tend to prefer to hold a grudge rather than let bygones be bygones. Indeed, the Dwarf language has no word for forgiveness, but many subtle variations on revenge, recompense and retribution.
The Ruinous Powers
The Dwarfs have been fighting the forces of Chaos since the very first page of the Great Book of Grudges. Despite the strength of their mountain strongholds, when the power of Chaos grows strong and the followers of the dark gods sweep down from the north the Dwarfs inevitably suffer. Many are the grudges against the Ruinous Powers, but the greatest must surely be that held for the loss of Karak Vlag. During the first Great War against Chaos when the Dwarfs fought side by side with the elves in a desperate struggle for survival the hold of Karak Vlag in the north of the Worlds Edge mountains was enveloped by the warping influence of Chaos, cutting it off from the outside world. After the Chaotic hordes had finally been driven back to their own realm, the Dwarfs returned to the site of Karak Vlag to find that the stronghold and its entire garrison had vanished into the aethyr, as if it had never existed.
The Great Betrayal
The event that may have originally sparked the Great Betrayal is recorded in Dammaz Kron as a relatively minor grudge concerning the theft of a caravan of gold and other goods being transported across the Old World. The attackers were described merely as Elgi - Khazalid for Elves - since at the time the Dwarfs did not distinguish between High Elves and Dark Elves. The Sundering of the Elves had not concerned the Dwarfs in their mountain kingdoms since the concept of a war of kin against kin was totally incomprehensible to them, and they had maintained good relations with the elves of Ulthuan. In fact the Druchii had been secretly raiding Dwarf caravans disguised as Asur warriors, and as the raids continued the Dwarf king, Gotrek Starbreaker, issued strong protests to the Phoenix King demanding compensation. Caledor the Second, the Phoenix King at the time, was considered arrogant even by elf standards, and he ignored all demands made against him, saying only that the Phoenix King did not answer demands but granted pleas.
Relations between the two races became increasingly acrimonious, and things reached a head when the ambassador sent to Ulthuan by an infuriated King Gotrek in a final attempt to prevent a war was sent home with his beard shaved off, causing the ambassador to take the slayer oath in shame. The inevitable war that followed is recorded as the War of Vengeance, although the High Elves refer to it as the War of the Beard. For the next four centuries the two races slaughtered each other on battlefields across the Old World and many great and powerful grudges were added to the pages of Dammaz Kron, until the Battle of Three Towers at the gates of Tor Alessi, where King Gotrek slew Caledor and took the Phoenix crown from his corpse as payment for the many wrongs suffered by his people. The Dwarf army marched back to Karaz-a-Karak and placed the crown among the treasure hoard of the High Kings, where it remains locked away to this day.
The Grobi Wars
By far the greatest and most vengeful of the grudges held in Dammaz Kron are against the Grobi ? Khazalid for Goblins - and those who aided them. Page after page of the tome records in grim detail the events of the thousand year long period of Dwarven history when tribes of Goblins swarmed over the Worlds Edge Mountains inflicting unthinkable suffering on the Dwarf kingdoms. Earthquakes, eruptions and floods weakened the impregnable defences of their strongholds, and when the Goblins attacked not even the unbreakable axes and hammers of the Dwarfs were able to stop the never ending tide of greenskins from overrunning their holds. The Everlasting Realm was shattered as countless beleaguered outposts, settlements, mines and temples were destroyed and occupied by their enemies.
Among all the grudges recorded in Dammaz Kron, the most grievous losses ever suffered occurred at the hands of Goblins, Orcs, and Skaven as entire Clans were killed to the last Dwarf and mighty kingdoms were utterly destroyed. Karak Ungor the delving hold, now known as Red Eye Mountain. Karak Varn and its gromril-rich mines by the shores of Black Water. Ekrund, home to the Dragonback clans, now known as Mount Bloodhorn. Gunbad, the largest and richest mine in the Worlds Edge Mountains and home to the blue crystal Brynduraz. Mount Silverspear, seized by the Orc Warlord Urk Grimfang and renamed Mount Grimfang. Karak Eight Peaks, Karak Azgal and Karak Drazh, all taken in the space of fifty years. The loss of these treasured holds is still felt by every living Dwarf as though it happened yesterday, and all Dwarfs dream of the day when they can purge the greenskin filth from their ancient halls forever.
Karak Eight Peaks
When the Greenskin horde approached Karak Eight Peaks, the Dwarfs gathered within its walls, confident the impregnable fortress was in no real danger. When the Orcs used their amplified magic to blast a hole in the impossibly thick wall surrounding the city, the Dwarfs were dumbstruck. The idea of an invading army breaking through the perimeter of Karak Eight Peaks was unthinkable. As a wave of snarling, bellowing greenskins pours through the breach, the dour but determined defenders of the doomed city make a last stand.
The news spreads like a shockwave. How could one tribe of greenskins capture the seemingly impenetrable fortress? High King Thorgrim Grudgebearer vowed revenge, the grudge against the Orcs is perhaps the third oldest in in the book of Dwarf grudges. Thorgrim rallied the Dwarf masses and has commanded every Dwarf in the city to make preparations for the war now underway. This seemingly impossible defeat has awoken the primal nature of many a Dwarf. Even those Dwarfs only concerned with their own business dealings soon found themselves rekindling the hostility felt towards the Orcs. The taking of Karak Eight Peaks will not go unrevenged.
No axe or hammer shall rest until the taint of the grobi has been wiped from the face of the earth. We shall not rest when our ancient halls have been reclaimed, we shall not rest when the Everlasting Realm has been rebuilt, for we are oathbound to rest only when we have driven the grobi from the mountains and the dark places of the world for ever. Only then shall the spirits of the ancestors be truly avenged.
Of all the creatures in the world, none are more loathsome or worthy of hate than the Grobi. They are a wicked, treacherous race without morality, conscience or honour, the cause of endless woe for our people. No Karak bears a Book of Grudges that does not have many a line devoted to the actions of those foul creatures, and no Dwarf would hesitate before burying his axe in the neck of a Grobi. Every day which passes while these creatures still draw breath brings shame to us all.
Dwarfs are defined by their reverence for their past. They tirelessly construct monumental tombs in order to worship and venerate their ancestors, and great value is placed upon their oldest artefacts in order to respect the long dead craftsmen who originally fashioned them and to help preserve ancient Dwarf traditions. It is said that when Dwarfs are in any doubt as to how to proceed they look to the Dwarf with the longest beard to tell them what to do. This is invariably the wisest solution.
Dwarfs have exceedingly good memories, and live to a very great age. It is the task of any self respecting Dwarf to memorize the names of every Dwarf in their extended family going back many generations to the time their Clan was first founded by a common ancestor. Should a wrong be done to a Dwarf, it is considered to be dealt equally to their Clan and to their ancestors and their unborn descendants, and every other member of the Clan will be duty bound to avenge them. Dwarfs are a proud, stubborn race, who rarely compromise and are never seen to intentionally back down from a fight. This aspect of their character is epitomised by Dammaz Kron - the Great Book of Grudges ? a massive tome written in the blood of the High Kings which recounts all the great wrongs, unpaid debts and deeds of treachery perpetrated against the Dwarf race. Although the grudges listed in the book are occasionally avenged, Dwarfs on the whole tend to prefer to hold a grudge rather than let bygones be bygones. Indeed, the Dwarf language has no word for forgiveness, but many subtle variations on revenge, recompense and retribution.
The Ruinous Powers
The Dwarfs have been fighting the forces of Chaos since the very first page of the Great Book of Grudges. Despite the strength of their mountain strongholds, when the power of Chaos grows strong and the followers of the dark gods sweep down from the north the Dwarfs inevitably suffer. Many are the grudges against the Ruinous Powers, but the greatest must surely be that held for the loss of Karak Vlag. During the first Great War against Chaos when the Dwarfs fought side by side with the elves in a desperate struggle for survival the hold of Karak Vlag in the north of the Worlds Edge mountains was enveloped by the warping influence of Chaos, cutting it off from the outside world. After the Chaotic hordes had finally been driven back to their own realm, the Dwarfs returned to the site of Karak Vlag to find that the stronghold and its entire garrison had vanished into the aethyr, as if it had never existed.
The Great Betrayal
The event that may have originally sparked the Great Betrayal is recorded in Dammaz Kron as a relatively minor grudge concerning the theft of a caravan of gold and other goods being transported across the Old World. The attackers were described merely as Elgi - Khazalid for Elves - since at the time the Dwarfs did not distinguish between High Elves and Dark Elves. The Sundering of the Elves had not concerned the Dwarfs in their mountain kingdoms since the concept of a war of kin against kin was totally incomprehensible to them, and they had maintained good relations with the elves of Ulthuan. In fact the Druchii had been secretly raiding Dwarf caravans disguised as Asur warriors, and as the raids continued the Dwarf king, Gotrek Starbreaker, issued strong protests to the Phoenix King demanding compensation. Caledor the Second, the Phoenix King at the time, was considered arrogant even by elf standards, and he ignored all demands made against him, saying only that the Phoenix King did not answer demands but granted pleas.
Relations between the two races became increasingly acrimonious, and things reached a head when the ambassador sent to Ulthuan by an infuriated King Gotrek in a final attempt to prevent a war was sent home with his beard shaved off, causing the ambassador to take the slayer oath in shame. The inevitable war that followed is recorded as the War of Vengeance, although the High Elves refer to it as the War of the Beard. For the next four centuries the two races slaughtered each other on battlefields across the Old World and many great and powerful grudges were added to the pages of Dammaz Kron, until the Battle of Three Towers at the gates of Tor Alessi, where King Gotrek slew Caledor and took the Phoenix crown from his corpse as payment for the many wrongs suffered by his people. The Dwarf army marched back to Karaz-a-Karak and placed the crown among the treasure hoard of the High Kings, where it remains locked away to this day.
The Grobi Wars
By far the greatest and most vengeful of the grudges held in Dammaz Kron are against the Grobi ? Khazalid for Goblins - and those who aided them. Page after page of the tome records in grim detail the events of the thousand year long period of Dwarven history when tribes of Goblins swarmed over the Worlds Edge Mountains inflicting unthinkable suffering on the Dwarf kingdoms. Earthquakes, eruptions and floods weakened the impregnable defences of their strongholds, and when the Goblins attacked not even the unbreakable axes and hammers of the Dwarfs were able to stop the never ending tide of greenskins from overrunning their holds. The Everlasting Realm was shattered as countless beleaguered outposts, settlements, mines and temples were destroyed and occupied by their enemies.
Among all the grudges recorded in Dammaz Kron, the most grievous losses ever suffered occurred at the hands of Goblins, Orcs, and Skaven as entire Clans were killed to the last Dwarf and mighty kingdoms were utterly destroyed. Karak Ungor the delving hold, now known as Red Eye Mountain. Karak Varn and its gromril-rich mines by the shores of Black Water. Ekrund, home to the Dragonback clans, now known as Mount Bloodhorn. Gunbad, the largest and richest mine in the Worlds Edge Mountains and home to the blue crystal Brynduraz. Mount Silverspear, seized by the Orc Warlord Urk Grimfang and renamed Mount Grimfang. Karak Eight Peaks, Karak Azgal and Karak Drazh, all taken in the space of fifty years. The loss of these treasured holds is still felt by every living Dwarf as though it happened yesterday, and all Dwarfs dream of the day when they can purge the greenskin filth from their ancient halls forever.
Karak Eight Peaks
When the Greenskin horde approached Karak Eight Peaks, the Dwarfs gathered within its walls, confident the impregnable fortress was in no real danger. When the Orcs used their amplified magic to blast a hole in the impossibly thick wall surrounding the city, the Dwarfs were dumbstruck. The idea of an invading army breaking through the perimeter of Karak Eight Peaks was unthinkable. As a wave of snarling, bellowing greenskins pours through the breach, the dour but determined defenders of the doomed city make a last stand.
The news spreads like a shockwave. How could one tribe of greenskins capture the seemingly impenetrable fortress? High King Thorgrim Grudgebearer vowed revenge, the grudge against the Orcs is perhaps the third oldest in in the book of Dwarf grudges. Thorgrim rallied the Dwarf masses and has commanded every Dwarf in the city to make preparations for the war now underway. This seemingly impossible defeat has awoken the primal nature of many a Dwarf. Even those Dwarfs only concerned with their own business dealings soon found themselves rekindling the hostility felt towards the Orcs. The taking of Karak Eight Peaks will not go unrevenged.
No axe or hammer shall rest until the taint of the grobi has been wiped from the face of the earth. We shall not rest when our ancient halls have been reclaimed, we shall not rest when the Everlasting Realm has been rebuilt, for we are oathbound to rest only when we have driven the grobi from the mountains and the dark places of the world for ever. Only then shall the spirits of the ancestors be truly avenged.
Shadowlands Overview
Following the death of Aenarion, first Phoenix King of Ulthuan, the Elves faced a difficult choice. Some argued that Malekith, Aenarion's lone surviving son, should succeed his father. Others, however, feared what Aenarion had become after he drew the Sword of Khaine and worried that the dread sword's curse had been passed on to Malekith. In the end, it was Bel-Shannar who was chosen to lead the Elves, and not Aenarion's heir.
At first, Malekith concealed his lust for power and his hatred of the Elves who had denied him his birthright. Instead, he made allies and won great victories in war, rising to a position of prominence among his people second only to the Phoenix King himself. It was then that he made his move, assassinating Bel-Shannar and proclaiming himself the rightful Phoenix King. Only one thing now remained. Malekith would have to prove his quality by entering the sacred flame at the Shrine of Asuryan, to be judged by the greatest of the Elven gods.
When he did so, however, the flame rejected him. Malekith was burned and disfigured, and his servants rushed the ambitious lord to the land of Nagarythe in the north of Ulthuan. When truth of the assassination came to light, the High Elves made war upon Malekith and his followers. When he was defeated by the new Phoenix King, Caledor the Conqueror, the son of Aenarion hatched a mad plan to undo the magic of the Vortex and let the raw power of Chaos spill into Ulthuan, destroying his enemies. The attempt was only partially successful, but the results were devastating.
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.
What little remains of Nagarythe is a tortured and twisted land, blasted by fire and seared by destructive magical energies. Strange, mutated creatures stalk this gloomy, barren wasteland of gray earth and black stone. The High Elves named this cursed place the Shadowlands, for it seemed always to be in darkness.
It was not long before the Dark Elves returned to claim their ancestral land, and the two sides have fought ceaselessly for control of the region ever since.
Though the Shadowlands are forever ruined by the catastrophic wars of the Sundering, the armies of the High Elves and Dark Elves have once again converged here to do battle. The invaders from Naggaroth are searching for more of the ancient menhirs that anchor the Vortex, and the High Elves have come to make sure they do not gain control of these standing stones. The menhirs are sources of great arcane power, but any tampering with that power could have far-reaching effects that mirror the ancient Sundering.
The Shadowlands have other value for the Dark Elves. Artifacts and relics from their distant past can be found here as well, and these are prized by the nobles of Naggaroth. Eager-eyed scavengers search the blasted wastes for some trinket they can offer to curry favor with their lords, or perhaps even with the Witch King himself.
Complicating matters for the warriors of House Uthorin is the appearance of their great rival, House Arkaneth. These two houses despise each other deeply, even by Dark Elf standards. The Witch King has commanded the rulers of both noble houses to take control of the Shadowlands menhirs, pitting his two most powerful rivals against one another. In this way, Malekith intends to ensure that neither Lord Uthorin nor Lady Arkaneth become powerful enough to pose a threat to him.
While the warriors of Naggaroth scour the Shadowlands for pieces of the past, it is the High Elves who make the most surprising discovery. Following a battle at one of the invaders' dig sites, ancient scrolls are found that complete a prophecy once thought lost. The events described in the antiquated scrolls bear a disquieting reference to the unfolding Age of Reckoning, but the prophecy also offers a slim hope that the Dark Elves' terrible plan can be stopped.
More time is needed to research the prophecy and convince the rulers of Ulthuan that it must be pursued. Time, however, is a luxury that the High Elves are quickly running out of. Their armies are spread thin, as many of their legions are still in the Old World fighting to aid the Empire and the realms of the Dwarfs. The Shining Guard has barely been able to slow the advance of the invading army, and if the Dark Elves move on the great gates that grant passage to the Inner Kingdoms, there is grave doubt that they can be stopped.
The spark of hope, it seems, may be extinguished before it has truly been kindled.
At first, Malekith concealed his lust for power and his hatred of the Elves who had denied him his birthright. Instead, he made allies and won great victories in war, rising to a position of prominence among his people second only to the Phoenix King himself. It was then that he made his move, assassinating Bel-Shannar and proclaiming himself the rightful Phoenix King. Only one thing now remained. Malekith would have to prove his quality by entering the sacred flame at the Shrine of Asuryan, to be judged by the greatest of the Elven gods.
When he did so, however, the flame rejected him. Malekith was burned and disfigured, and his servants rushed the ambitious lord to the land of Nagarythe in the north of Ulthuan. When truth of the assassination came to light, the High Elves made war upon Malekith and his followers. When he was defeated by the new Phoenix King, Caledor the Conqueror, the son of Aenarion hatched a mad plan to undo the magic of the Vortex and let the raw power of Chaos spill into Ulthuan, destroying his enemies. The attempt was only partially successful, but the results were devastating.
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.
What little remains of Nagarythe is a tortured and twisted land, blasted by fire and seared by destructive magical energies. Strange, mutated creatures stalk this gloomy, barren wasteland of gray earth and black stone. The High Elves named this cursed place the Shadowlands, for it seemed always to be in darkness.
It was not long before the Dark Elves returned to claim their ancestral land, and the two sides have fought ceaselessly for control of the region ever since.
Though the Shadowlands are forever ruined by the catastrophic wars of the Sundering, the armies of the High Elves and Dark Elves have once again converged here to do battle. The invaders from Naggaroth are searching for more of the ancient menhirs that anchor the Vortex, and the High Elves have come to make sure they do not gain control of these standing stones. The menhirs are sources of great arcane power, but any tampering with that power could have far-reaching effects that mirror the ancient Sundering.
The Shadowlands have other value for the Dark Elves. Artifacts and relics from their distant past can be found here as well, and these are prized by the nobles of Naggaroth. Eager-eyed scavengers search the blasted wastes for some trinket they can offer to curry favor with their lords, or perhaps even with the Witch King himself.
Complicating matters for the warriors of House Uthorin is the appearance of their great rival, House Arkaneth. These two houses despise each other deeply, even by Dark Elf standards. The Witch King has commanded the rulers of both noble houses to take control of the Shadowlands menhirs, pitting his two most powerful rivals against one another. In this way, Malekith intends to ensure that neither Lord Uthorin nor Lady Arkaneth become powerful enough to pose a threat to him.
While the warriors of Naggaroth scour the Shadowlands for pieces of the past, it is the High Elves who make the most surprising discovery. Following a battle at one of the invaders' dig sites, ancient scrolls are found that complete a prophecy once thought lost. The events described in the antiquated scrolls bear a disquieting reference to the unfolding Age of Reckoning, but the prophecy also offers a slim hope that the Dark Elves' terrible plan can be stopped.
More time is needed to research the prophecy and convince the rulers of Ulthuan that it must be pursued. Time, however, is a luxury that the High Elves are quickly running out of. Their armies are spread thin, as many of their legions are still in the Old World fighting to aid the Empire and the realms of the Dwarfs. The Shining Guard has barely been able to slow the advance of the invading army, and if the Dark Elves move on the great gates that grant passage to the Inner Kingdoms, there is grave doubt that they can be stopped.
The spark of hope, it seems, may be extinguished before it has truly been kindled.
Guide to Statistics
Statistics and resistances. In every MMO each does something slightly different than the last. Strength, agility, willpower, each career has a set of statistics more important to them than another and it's important to know which are important to your career. Finding an item with +5 Willpower might not be that great for your Dwarf Engineer, but maybe it would be more useful for your Witchhunter. The purpose of the guide is to help guide to to the statistic and resistances that you'll find in WAR.
Strength
Increases your melee damage and makes it harder for enemies to parry or block your attacks.
Willpower
Increases your chances to disrupt hostile spells and increases all healing you do.
Toughness
Reduces the damage you take from all sources.
Wounds
Increases your maximum hitpoints.
Initiative
Increases your chance to dodge ranged attacks and makes it more difficult for enemies to critically hit you.
Weapon
Increases your chances to parry melee attacks and allows your melee attacks to bypass a portion of the enemy's armor.
Ballistic
Increases your ranged damage and makes it harder for your enemies to block or dodge your ranged attacks.
Intelligence
Increases your magical damage and makes it harder for enemies to disrupt or block your attacks.
Strength
Increases your melee damage and makes it harder for enemies to parry or block your attacks.
Willpower
Increases your chances to disrupt hostile spells and increases all healing you do.
Toughness
Reduces the damage you take from all sources.
Wounds
Increases your maximum hitpoints.
Initiative
Increases your chance to dodge ranged attacks and makes it more difficult for enemies to critically hit you.
Weapon
Increases your chances to parry melee attacks and allows your melee attacks to bypass a portion of the enemy's armor.
Ballistic
Increases your ranged damage and makes it harder for your enemies to block or dodge your ranged attacks.
Intelligence
Increases your magical damage and makes it harder for enemies to disrupt or block your attacks.
Warhammer Renown Guide
Renown is the system which measures Realm vs. Realm (RvR) participation by a player. It functions as an experience system for RvR and players can “level up” to earn Renown ranks that show their proficiency at fighting the opposing Realm. Renown gain is also capped based on a character’s level so a player can’t be Renown rank 50 and player rank 5.
The Renown system dictates the rewards made available to a player (items, abilities, titles, or otherwise). Renown is gained through many actions in WAR - killing other players, taking or defending battlefield objectives or keeps, participating in scenarios, and zone control.
Earning Renown
At the simplest level, you get Renown from killing other players. Each player has a flat amount of Renown they are worth depending on their current Player Rank (level). When one player is killed by another player, the deceased’s player rank and Renown rank are measured against those of the killer and the awarded Renown is adjusted upward or downward based on the parity of the two players. If the deceased player has been killed recently, they will be worth less Renown than normal, and sometimes none at all if they’ve come back into combat too quickly.
Renown for killing players is also awarded to members in groups. Group members must be active in RvR, and within a certain range of the nearly deceased individual to receive Renown. “Active in RvR” means that you must have performed an action against another player or benefited an ally who is also active. Renown is split amongst players on a percentage base.
For example: Bob, Joe and Mike are attacking Jack. Bob and Joe are grouped, but Mike is not. Bob and Joe do 70% of the damage it took to kill Jack and Mike did the remaining 30%. Let’s say that Jack was worth 100 Renown. Bob and Joe will split 70 Renown evenly, and Mike will get 30 Renown.
Renown is also granted to healers from a separate pool for aiding their allies. This is designed to provide incentive to healers to keep their realm mates alive whether they’re grouped with them or not. Every time you heal another player, whether they’ve been in combat recently or are currently in combat, you’ll get a little bit of Renown.
Players can also earn Renown for capturing and defending battlefield objectives and keeps. Each of these locations has a set amount of Renown, as well as a building pool of Renown, that is distributed when the keep or battlefield objective is taken or successfully defended. The amount of Renown granted increases in each tier (i.e., Tier 3 keeps are worth more than Tier 2 keeps) and is dependent on the number of players killed in the area.
Both winners and loser of scenarios will be granted Renown as a reward for their participation. The amount of Renown a player receives is directly related to the amount of points their realm earned in a scenario. The winners will obviously get more, but both sides will earn additional Renown for having fought in the scenario beyond any they’ve received from player kills.
Lastly, taking over an enemy zone will give you a chunk of Renown worth roughly 5 times your base if you’re actively fighting in RvR at the time of capture. Let’s say your base Renown worth is 100 points, you’ll be given roughly 500 points when a zone is captured!
Renown Rewards
As a reward for participating in RvR, characters will receive one Renown point per Renown rank reached. These Renown points can be used to purchase special character advancement rewards from your trainer. These rewards are primarily focused on improving your character’s RvR capabilities, but many offer minor benefits to PvE performance as well.
RvR Tactics are special tactics that can only be purchased with Renown points. These tactics have their own unique slots in addition to the existing career tactic slots to further customize your character’s abilities. Renown tactics have special effects that focus on RvR performance. In particular, they allow a player to become more effective against a particularly hated enemy. For example, if a player wanted to become the ultimate Greenskin killing machine, they would purchase many of the anti-Greenskin Renown tactics.
Examples:
Hard as Nails I – Increases your Toughness by 3, costs 1 Renown point.Hard as Nails V – Increases your Toughness by 42, costs 14 Renown points.Blade Master III – Increases your Strength by 9 and Weapon Skill by 9, costs 10 Renown points.Fireproof I – Increases your Elemental resistance by 20, costs 5 Renown points.Improved Heavy Armor III – Increases your Armor by 900, costs 15 Renown points.
In addition to the Renown points, players also earn a new title with each Renown rank. These titles will help separate players who have been around the block from those who are greener than green (no pun intended Greenskin players).
Renown Items
When players hit certain Renown rank thresholds they earn the right to certain items. These items can only be bought from special shops, called Renown stores. There is a “Renown store” in every war camp and they function much like regular stores. However, each item in a Renown store has a Renown rank requirement, which means that you can’t buy or use it unless you are above a certain Renown rank. These items reward players that keep their Renown rank and level close. We’ve even put some of the RvR armor set pieces in the Renown stores. You’ll still have to do certain other things to complete your sets, but I’ll let you guys figure that out for yourselves.
Once a player has reached level 40 and Renown rank 40+, Renown items becomes really interesting. While the Renown store is still a player’s primary way of upgrading their RvR gear, players who participate in city captures also get access to really awesome RvR armor sets. A combination of keeping your renown-rank high and storming cities and killing kings will put players on the right track to get the best renown gear in the game. All the renown 40+ items are effectively level 40+ items. So, the higher your renown rank, the better the items are that you can get from the renown store.
The Renown system dictates the rewards made available to a player (items, abilities, titles, or otherwise). Renown is gained through many actions in WAR - killing other players, taking or defending battlefield objectives or keeps, participating in scenarios, and zone control.
Earning Renown
At the simplest level, you get Renown from killing other players. Each player has a flat amount of Renown they are worth depending on their current Player Rank (level). When one player is killed by another player, the deceased’s player rank and Renown rank are measured against those of the killer and the awarded Renown is adjusted upward or downward based on the parity of the two players. If the deceased player has been killed recently, they will be worth less Renown than normal, and sometimes none at all if they’ve come back into combat too quickly.
Renown for killing players is also awarded to members in groups. Group members must be active in RvR, and within a certain range of the nearly deceased individual to receive Renown. “Active in RvR” means that you must have performed an action against another player or benefited an ally who is also active. Renown is split amongst players on a percentage base.
For example: Bob, Joe and Mike are attacking Jack. Bob and Joe are grouped, but Mike is not. Bob and Joe do 70% of the damage it took to kill Jack and Mike did the remaining 30%. Let’s say that Jack was worth 100 Renown. Bob and Joe will split 70 Renown evenly, and Mike will get 30 Renown.
Renown is also granted to healers from a separate pool for aiding their allies. This is designed to provide incentive to healers to keep their realm mates alive whether they’re grouped with them or not. Every time you heal another player, whether they’ve been in combat recently or are currently in combat, you’ll get a little bit of Renown.
Players can also earn Renown for capturing and defending battlefield objectives and keeps. Each of these locations has a set amount of Renown, as well as a building pool of Renown, that is distributed when the keep or battlefield objective is taken or successfully defended. The amount of Renown granted increases in each tier (i.e., Tier 3 keeps are worth more than Tier 2 keeps) and is dependent on the number of players killed in the area.
Both winners and loser of scenarios will be granted Renown as a reward for their participation. The amount of Renown a player receives is directly related to the amount of points their realm earned in a scenario. The winners will obviously get more, but both sides will earn additional Renown for having fought in the scenario beyond any they’ve received from player kills.
Lastly, taking over an enemy zone will give you a chunk of Renown worth roughly 5 times your base if you’re actively fighting in RvR at the time of capture. Let’s say your base Renown worth is 100 points, you’ll be given roughly 500 points when a zone is captured!
Renown Rewards
As a reward for participating in RvR, characters will receive one Renown point per Renown rank reached. These Renown points can be used to purchase special character advancement rewards from your trainer. These rewards are primarily focused on improving your character’s RvR capabilities, but many offer minor benefits to PvE performance as well.
RvR Tactics are special tactics that can only be purchased with Renown points. These tactics have their own unique slots in addition to the existing career tactic slots to further customize your character’s abilities. Renown tactics have special effects that focus on RvR performance. In particular, they allow a player to become more effective against a particularly hated enemy. For example, if a player wanted to become the ultimate Greenskin killing machine, they would purchase many of the anti-Greenskin Renown tactics.
Examples:
Hard as Nails I – Increases your Toughness by 3, costs 1 Renown point.Hard as Nails V – Increases your Toughness by 42, costs 14 Renown points.Blade Master III – Increases your Strength by 9 and Weapon Skill by 9, costs 10 Renown points.Fireproof I – Increases your Elemental resistance by 20, costs 5 Renown points.Improved Heavy Armor III – Increases your Armor by 900, costs 15 Renown points.
In addition to the Renown points, players also earn a new title with each Renown rank. These titles will help separate players who have been around the block from those who are greener than green (no pun intended Greenskin players).
Renown Items
When players hit certain Renown rank thresholds they earn the right to certain items. These items can only be bought from special shops, called Renown stores. There is a “Renown store” in every war camp and they function much like regular stores. However, each item in a Renown store has a Renown rank requirement, which means that you can’t buy or use it unless you are above a certain Renown rank. These items reward players that keep their Renown rank and level close. We’ve even put some of the RvR armor set pieces in the Renown stores. You’ll still have to do certain other things to complete your sets, but I’ll let you guys figure that out for yourselves.
Once a player has reached level 40 and Renown rank 40+, Renown items becomes really interesting. While the Renown store is still a player’s primary way of upgrading their RvR gear, players who participate in city captures also get access to really awesome RvR armor sets. A combination of keeping your renown-rank high and storming cities and killing kings will put players on the right track to get the best renown gear in the game. All the renown 40+ items are effectively level 40+ items. So, the higher your renown rank, the better the items are that you can get from the renown store.
General Guide to WAR
Greetings,
before I start with the guide, I'd like to have a chance to introduce myself and say a few words.
1.2. The guide:
Warhammer Online cought my eyes about a year ago. And I was immediatly interested. Since I have the tendency to tumble into games not really knowing what they're all about, I saw a nice opportunity to follow a game in it's development and absorbing all the information as the game is taking shape. While doing so, I started to documentate things, since many info is scattered all around the place. After a few months a guide was born.
When reading the guide, please keep in mind that a lot of it's content is based on unofficial information. As content becomes official, I'll be updating the guide if needed to be.
1.3 My regiment:
As I have already stated before, I'm a member of Eva Vix A european hardcore PvP guild lead by Esraymuk. A few months ago, I was appointed an officer's position in this guild, and I'm now overseeing the recruitment proces. The community of this guild has helped me establish the guide. They took out spelling errors and grammatical issues, brought forward new content and information. Without their help, this guide would not have been what it is now.
1.4 Special thanks to...:
I wish to thank Eva Vix and its community for it's support and help in creating this guide, as I said before, without them this guide would be very poor. I also wish to thank the WarhammerAlliance community, for it's constructive and mature posts that helped me understand a lot of the game mechanics. And finaly a word of thanks should go to EA Mythic for developing this jewel of an MMORPG.
OK, so that was the introduction. Let's get down to business and focus on what this guide is all about: Warhammer Online!
2. YOUR CHARACTER
In this chapter, everything related to your playable character is discussed. How will it evolve, how will it look like, what will it be capable off. I will slightly touch the races and careers as well. But I'm not going deeper into them because of the simple reason that that information is enough dough to bake a whole new guide.
2.1 Character Creation:
What's one of the features a MMORPG distinguishes itself from other games? Indeed, Character Creation. It's the first and far most important choice a player needs to go through. It's in this phase he will be determining the race, the class and the looks of his character. Specialy for roleplayers the latter is a vital stage to make their gaming experience as pleasant as possible.
2.2. Character Evolution:
As in every MMORPG as your progress in Warhammer Online, your character will evolve and grow stronger. However, the devolepment team of EA Mythic have put extra attention into this feature. Many of the roleplayers amongst us are really relieved to hear this, since it will greatly help to make your character look unique and distinguished. It's actually one of the goals of the dev team to make sure no two characters will look alike.
2.3 The Tome of Knowledge
Anyone who is familiar with the series Charmed will recognise the Book of Shadows in the Tome of Knowledge. The Tome of Knowledge is a book everyone will be carrying with them. It contains all information you've gathered so far by exploring the world. If you meet a specific type of enemy, there will appear a short discription of this foe in your Tome of Knowledge. If you discover a new area, your Tome of Knowledge will be updated as well and might show a short background history of that specific area and a map.
Basically, everything you've discovered will be stored in your Tome of Knowledge: The palm computer of the Warhammer Online world. However, besides being a scrap book, the developers took the role of the Tomb of Knowledge in Warhammer Online a step further. Not only will it keep track of your achievements, it will also be able to generate new quests for you to venture on.
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J8XaEUuYzI
2.4. Means of Transportation
In every MMORPG, transportation plays a vital role. How transportation in Warhammer Online will be taken care of, is unknown at this point. The only thing we know for sure at this point is that every race will have a unique way of transportation. Screenshots of Dwarven Gyrocopters have appeared. Orcs are supposed to be shot away with catapults. There's also speculation about a selfcontrolled mean of transportation (read mount) and a specific transportation route (boat, trolly-train, god knows). As soon as more information is out on that matter, I'll make sure it gets updated.
2.5 Ways of expression
Read "emotes". We all know them as /bow; /sit; /wave; etc... Warhammer Online will have these emotes as well to support expression of a character. We'll just have to wait and see what our possibilities are.
3. THE WORLD OF WARHAMMER ONLINE
In this chapter I'll be discussing what the world in Warhammer Online will look like. What is your relation to the world? How can your actions affect the world? Also trading and crafting will be part of this chapter! But there's one thing you should always keep in mind while reading this chapter, and I quote:
Now let's get down to business shall we?
3.1 Questing
By doing quests in Warhammer Online, you wont just only be gaining EXP and rewards, but quest actually are the backbone for the storyline in Warhammer Online. By completing quests, you'll be walking through the story of your character, unraveling secrets, digging up old myths and revealing huge complots.
Because the storyline and quests are so mend into eachother, the developers have split up quests into chapters. Based on your level, the amount of quests and their difficulty will increase along with your level.
There's two different ways to divide quests into different categories. I'll discuss them here:
3.2. Rewards:
Rewards from quests and missions will be vary, depending on the difficulty of the quest. So far there has been official confirmation of three kinds of rewards:
This doesn't mean those three will be the only forms of rewards. It's the only three that have been confirmed. Some quests will even give you the option to chose what kind of a reward you receive: cash, exp or gear. A very promising feature.
Also, what irritated me in a lot of games was that when I finished a quest as a mage, wich took me to all corners of the world, I got an iron breastplate as a reward. None of that in Warhammer Online. Your reward will be measured with your career choice.
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgnK1_yBQ5s
3.3 Trading and Crafting
Also on this topic EA Mythic has not released too much information yet. The only thing they promise is a very innovative crafting system. Also all crafting will be done to contribute to the war effort. There wont be a recipy to make a flowerpot or to craft a straw skirt, it's war, everything you craft goes directly to the war. So in other words: items such as armor and weaponry.
4. GAINING LEVELS AND ABILITIES
In this chapter I'll try to explain how gaining levels, and learning abilties will work. It's something we're all very eager to learn more about, however, it's one of the hardest things to explain. So bare with me.
I also feel the urge to indicate that not everything written here will comply with the truth and how it will be once the game is released. Specialy this chapter is a gathering of official information, and gaps have been filled with logic, speculations and assumptions. So please, do not think this is holy information. I could be wrong.
Anyways, that being said, let's grab the cow with the horns and get down to business.
4.1 Gaining Experience Points, Ranks and Tiers.
In Warhammer Online there are 40 levels. However, they wont be called levels, but ranks, devided in four Tiers. So ten ranks per tier starting from Tier 1/Rank 1 and Tier 4/Rank 10 being the cap at this moment. Tiers will be important in the RvR system, as will be explained later on.
To advance in ranks, and eventually tiers, you will have to gather experience points. You can gain these Experience Points (also refered to as EXP) through three different ways:
There might be other means to gather EXP in Warhammer Online, but they've not been confirmed yet.
So yes, you will be able to gain ranks and tiers through PvP only if you do not like PvE at all. How and where the line lies between PvP and PvE is irrelevant to this chapter and will be explained later on. Important here is to remember that, yet again, Warhammer Online is all about your own choices and preferences.
4.2 Abilties
There are 3 kinds of abilties in Warhammer Online:
4.3 The Skill Tree Structure:
The Skill Tree Structure is a grid on wich you can keep track of what abilities you've activated and unlocked with the points you've gather by gaining experience, rank and tiers. Per Tier, Action, Tactic and Morale has it's own Skill Tree. Thus there are three skill trees per Tier, bringing us a total of twelve skill trees when you've reached maximum level.
Have a look at this visualisation of the Skill Tree Structure. It's very helpfull in understanding this concept, cause I know it's all very complicated. Just read the explaination over and over again and keep staring at the Skill Tree Structure in that link and it'll become a little bit more clear.
Sources:http://www.war-rvr.net/calc/http://www.warhammeralliance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6422 - http://mythicmktg.fileburst.com/war/us/media/flash/2007-09_pp_CombatSystem.html
5. REALM VERSUS REALM
This chapter is actually what Warhammer Online is all about. The ungoing war between six races. Allthough their motivations might differ, they all have the same goal: Whipe the opposing nation of the face of the earth.
In this chapter I’ll try to explain how RvR works in Warhammer Online, since there are various ways the RvR is set up in Warhammer Online. Before I go on, please take a look at the next picture and study it for a while.
I’ll be refering to this picture regularly in this chapter, so keep it close at hand. On the image you see the battlefront between the Dwarfs and the Greenskins. Dwarfs represented in the brown color, Greenskins represented in the green color. Take a good look how they’re connected with eachother.
5.1 Connection between Tiers, zones and gaining levels.
In chapter 4 you read how I was talking about Tiers. You probably wondered then why they added tiers, since levels and ranks are practically the same. Well here’s why. Not only is your Tier connected to your rank or level, it’s also connected to the zone’s you’ll be fighting in.
When you start playing you start in the starting zone, d’uh. Well, this zone is called the Tier 1 zone. You probably noticed the numbers on the image as well. You’ll start in the zones with the number 1 in them. Those are the Tier 1 zones. They’re connected with eachother and the connection represents the Tier 1 battlfront between the Dwarfs and Greenskins.
Once you reach Tier 2 (or level 10) you’ll be able to enter the Tier 2 zone. This proces goes on untill Tier 4. The Tier 4 zone of your nation is connected with your nation’s capital, represented by the star on the image. So in other words, there’s no way you’ll be visiting your capital as a Tier 3 or lower. In order to enter your own capital, you’ll need to be Tier 4. Why this is the case, will be explained later on.
5.2 Connection between Tiers, zones and RvR.
You probably wonder now what this all has to do with RvR. On the image you see how the Tier 1 zone of the Dwarfs is connected by a line with the Tier 1 zone of the Greenskins. Same goes for Tier 2 and Tier 3. The connections represent the battlefronts between the two races.
Each of these Tiered zones has an RvR area and a PvE area. The lower Tiered zones will have large PvE areas and small RvR areas. But as you progress in level, the size of the RvR area will grow. So in Tier 4, the most part of the zone is RvR, and a small portion will be PvE. So it’s perfectly possible to reach highest rank by just playing PvE or only playing RvR. However a combination of both, will be the quickest and easiest way to reach maximum level.
Not only can you gain experience points through RvR, but also gold, gear and loot will be available through RvR. When you kill an enemy, random generated items will be lootable from their corps. So even for the sake of collecting some extra cash or gear, there’s no need to play PvE, since they’re obtainable through RvR as well.
The RvR area of the Dwarf Tier 1 zone is connected with the RvR area of the Greenskin Tier 1 zone: both RvR areas form the actual Tier 1 battlefront. The same goes for Tier 2 and Tier 3. Tier 4 is a little bit different, but will, once again, be explained later on. It’s in these battlefronts that the three types of RvR will take place. Another fourth type will take place in Tier 4.
5.3 Types of RvR.
Ok so we know now that the nations will clash with eachother in the battlefronts between the four tiered areas. But what form will this RvR have. As already said, there are four different types of RvR: skirmish RvR, Battlefields, Scenarios and Campaigns. I’ll explain the first three types of RvR here. Campaigns are connected with the special battlefront between the Tier 4 zones, so I’ll cover those in a different section later on.
5.3.2 Battlefields:
Within the RvR areas of the tiered zones there will be locations of interest. This could be an armory depot, an outpost, a watchtower, etc... These constructions can be claimed by your opposing nation and form the Battlefields. NPC’s might be guarding these structures and also the enemy will try to keep you away from these battlefields. The goal is to claim the structure for your own nation.
5.3.3 Scenarios:
In Warhammer Online there will be Scenarios that can take place all over the world. They are instanced, objecive based, evenly matched battles between two races. They will be linked with the story and the general war theme of the game. When you enter an instance you will be directed to a lobby. In that lobby you are set up against evenly matched forces of the enemy. If not enough players from the opposing realm show up, then NPC's will balance this out. So for example. You decide to go do a scenario with a group of 10 people around the same level. You and your team are directed to the lobby where you wait for the instance to begin. If the enemy only has 5 people showing up for that scenario, then they will get help from 5 NPC's to help balance the battle. When that is done, you will get an objective and a time limit (usually 15 to 30 minutes).
5.4 Victory Points
Your actions in the RvR areas will not only give you loot, gold and experience, but they’ll also give you Victory Points. Victory Points (VP) are points awarded to your nation through your achievements in RvR. Skirmish RvR will earn you a small amount of Victory Points. By capturing a structure in the Battlefield RvR, the reward in Victory Points will be larger. By succesfully completing a Scenario the reward in victory points will be great. But what is their purpose you ask? Let me try to explain.
Imagine that each battlefront between the two Tier 1 zones of Dwarfs and Greenskins has a scale. On the right side, the Dwarfs add the Victory Points they’ve earned through RvR, on the left side the Greenskins do the same with their Victory Points. Once, for example, the Greenskins have gathered enough Victory Points, the scale might tip over in their favor. When this happens, the Dwarf Tier 1 zone will be under Greenskin control.
What’s the reward you get from this you may ask? Well, a small percentage of the Victory Points earned in the Tier 1 zone will spill over onto the scale of the Tier 2 zone. Wich in it’s turn will spill over in the Tier 3 zone scale. This means that Tier 1 players will be contributing to the overall effort in the war of their race.
Now, grab that image again. Do you see the blue zone between the Greenskin Tier 4 zone ad the Dwarf Tier 4 zone? This is the neutral zone. It does not belong to any race (yet). You also see connecting arrows from the Tier 3 zones to the neutral zones. These arrows represent the spilling of Victory Points into the neutral zone.
There are also arrows running from the Tier 4 zones to the Neutral zone. The Tier 4 zones are connected to the neutral zones and also spill a larger percentage of their victory points onto the scale of the Neutral zone. The arrows do not only indicate that, but also mean that you can fysically access the neutral zone from the Tier 4 zone, once the neutral zone has fallen under your nation’s control. Tier 3 players wont be able to do this.
If the Greenskins have an overal better amount of Victory Points compared to the Dwarfs, then after a while, the Neutral zone will fall under Greenskin control. This is the first and most vital step in Campaigns. So here we go ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for the crème de la crème of Warhammer Online: Campaigns.
5.5 Campaigns
As we read before the Greenskins just gathered enough Victory Points to capture the Neutral Zone. Once that happens all the scenario’s in the Dwarven Tier 4 zone will lock down, the Dwarven Tier 4 zone also falls under Greenskin control and a path to the Dwarven capital has been opened for the Greenskins. Two things can happen next.
In the first case, the Dwarfs gather forces, receive help from their allies and push the forces of Destruction back to where they came from. The Greenskins and their allies should pay special attention then. Since if the Dwarfs succeed in this, the Neutral Zone might fall under their control and the Greenskins’ capital might be danger then!
In the second case, the Greenskins and their allies push through and arrive at the gates of the Dwarven capital. Once this happens, a series of scenarios will be opened. These scenarios all involve the City Siege (as the community started to call these scenarios). These scearios will have set objectives such as: “Hit a hole in the city walls” or “Breach the city gates”. While these city siege scenarios take place, the remaining Greenskins will have to hold their ground in the Tier 4 zone of the Dwarfs, as the Dwarfs will keep trying to push them back.
Once the city siege scenarios have been succesfully finished by the Greenskins, all hell will break lose. The city is open for storming then. Hordes of greenskins will flood the Dwarven capital and plunder, loot, murder and destroy. They’ll even be able to fight your leader, capture him and bring them to their capital for a nice session of torture and humiliation.
The actual city raid will be real time, and not instanced. Dwarfs will still be running around trying to stop the Greenskins of causing too much damage. But once Greenskins smell blood, they’re in a rage, and this time the Dwarfs could not hold them back.
When the city is completely in ruins, the Greenskins will even have control over the Dwarven capital. However, this is not indefinatly. After a set time, the Victory Points will be reset, and the scale will be back in balance. Watch out Greenskins, those Dwarves cary a grudge for a long time...
Sources: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J8XaEUuYzI - http://www.warhammeronline.com/english/media/podcast/files/Tir-RvR_explaination_final.html-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h31S9wMGbhE&mode=related&search=
5.6 Keeps
Yes, you DaoC fans, you read it right, Warhammer Online will have Keeps! Now for those who don't know DaoC and keeps, pay attention! Keeps are strategicaly orientated areas at the border of RvR zones that form some sort of an open RvR Battlefront. When a keep has been captured, it'll evolve into a fortress of your own faction. So if you're an Orc, then your keep will look Orcish. If you're a Dwarf, well then, it'll look Dwarvish. But do mind this, (and I'm sorry to inform this to the solo-oriented players) keeps can only be capture by guilds. To reward their effort, they can even let their guild banner wave on top of the keep to show everyone you own it. When a keep is captured it'll start out as a small enwalled area with a few guards, but after time (and I bet after you invested gold in it) it'll grow larger and larger making it harder to be captured by the enemy. To aid your guild in defending and holding your keep, NPC guards will be there to help you fight off the enemy when your guild crashed after a long LAN party. Both the keep keepers and the keep siegers will have an arsenal of siege weaponry to attack/defend a keep.
before I start with the guide, I'd like to have a chance to introduce myself and say a few words.
1.2. The guide:
Warhammer Online cought my eyes about a year ago. And I was immediatly interested. Since I have the tendency to tumble into games not really knowing what they're all about, I saw a nice opportunity to follow a game in it's development and absorbing all the information as the game is taking shape. While doing so, I started to documentate things, since many info is scattered all around the place. After a few months a guide was born.
When reading the guide, please keep in mind that a lot of it's content is based on unofficial information. As content becomes official, I'll be updating the guide if needed to be.
1.3 My regiment:
As I have already stated before, I'm a member of Eva Vix A european hardcore PvP guild lead by Esraymuk. A few months ago, I was appointed an officer's position in this guild, and I'm now overseeing the recruitment proces. The community of this guild has helped me establish the guide. They took out spelling errors and grammatical issues, brought forward new content and information. Without their help, this guide would not have been what it is now.
1.4 Special thanks to...:
I wish to thank Eva Vix and its community for it's support and help in creating this guide, as I said before, without them this guide would be very poor. I also wish to thank the WarhammerAlliance community, for it's constructive and mature posts that helped me understand a lot of the game mechanics. And finaly a word of thanks should go to EA Mythic for developing this jewel of an MMORPG.
OK, so that was the introduction. Let's get down to business and focus on what this guide is all about: Warhammer Online!
2. YOUR CHARACTER
In this chapter, everything related to your playable character is discussed. How will it evolve, how will it look like, what will it be capable off. I will slightly touch the races and careers as well. But I'm not going deeper into them because of the simple reason that that information is enough dough to bake a whole new guide.
2.1 Character Creation:
What's one of the features a MMORPG distinguishes itself from other games? Indeed, Character Creation. It's the first and far most important choice a player needs to go through. It's in this phase he will be determining the race, the class and the looks of his character. Specialy for roleplayers the latter is a vital stage to make their gaming experience as pleasant as possible.
2.1.1. Race:
At the release of Warhammer Online there will be six races available to chose from. Three of those will form the alliance of Order. They're in constant war and struggle with the three remaining races wich form the armies of Destruction. The war between these two factions is the thin red line throughout the whole game. Thus chosing the right race is a vital step in the character creation. Basically the armies of Destruction are trying to destroy the three other races for personal reason and for world domination. The alliance of Order allied with eachother to support eachother in their struggle for survival.Order:
- The Dwarfs
- The humans of the Empire
- The High Elfs
Destruction:
- The Greenskins
- The corrupted Chaos humans
- The Dark Elfs or Druchii
Source: http://www.warhammeronline.com/
2.1.2. Careers:
Your class or career is what you want to be in the game. Do you want to be a full armored meatshield, or do you prefer the fine art of magic? Would you rather be a devestating force weilding huge weaponry, or do you wish to support your allies in combat with magic? The career choice is up to you and is sometimes the hardest choice to make since it will greatly determine the gameplay.
Each race in Warhammer Online has four unique careers developed from a basic archtype. This archtype is the rough sketch of the career. Developers start from the archtype and built a unique character out of it. Sometimes their inovation combines two archtypes into one making an even more unique character!
The four archtypes in Warhammer Online are:
- The Tank: This is the meatshield, ready to take damage and protect their allies from the enemy. Their huge defence is backed up by their capability of weilding close combat weapons. Allthough not as specialised as the Melee DPS archtype, they're still capable of infliction some good damage.
- Melee DPS: The melee DPS (Damage Per Second) is the master of arms. His skill in weaponry makes him a very dangerous oponent in close combat. You'll find the Melee DPS at the front of the battle where they feel at home. Because they're needed at the front, they'll be able to take a hit or two, but not as well as the tank archtype can.
- Ranged DPS: This archtype is specialised in dealing damage from a distance. Whether they use magic, long ranging arrows or devestating bullets and bolts is irrelevant. Usually this archtype is the most vulnarable as well, relying on the other archtypes for protection.
- Support: This archtype will support its allies in combat. By tapping in to various mystical forces, they can boost their oponents to the maximum. Aside of that, they're also able to inflict damage, and heal the wounds of their comrades.
That being said, lets have a look how this translates to the six races in Warhammer Online:Dwarfs:
- Ironbreaker [Tank]
- Hammerer [Melee DPS]
- Engineer [Ranged DPS]
- Runepriest [Support]
Greenskins:
- Black Orc [Tank]
- Choppah [Melee DPS]
- Squig Herder [Ranged DPS]
- Shaman [Support]
Empire:
- Knight of the Blazing Sun [Tank]
- Witch Hunter [Melee DPS]
- Bright Wizard [Ranged DPS]
- Warrior Priest [Support]
Chaos:
- Chosen [Tank]
- Marauder [Melee DPS]
- Magus [Ranged DPS]
- Zealot Priest [Support]
High Elfs:
- Swordmaster [Tank]
- ? [Melee DPS]
- Shadow Warrior [Ranged DPS]
- Arch Mage [Support]
Dark Elfs:
- Black Guard [Tank]
- With Elf [Melee DPS]
- Sorceress [Ranged DPS]
- Disciple of Khaine [Support]
As I said before, some careers seem to be a hybrid between two archtypes. So there aren't really clear archtypes set. There are two good Empire examples for this:
Witch Hunter:
The witch hunter will be weilding rapiers with an uncunning precision. So that makes them the Melee DPS archtype. However they'll also be capable of shooting guns with a deadly accuracy, making them Ranged DPS too somehow.
Warrior Priest:
Since the Warrior Priest is capable of casting curative magic by the blessings of their diety Sigmar, they're categorised as the Support archtype of the Empire. However, their hammerskills are surely to be reckoned with, thus making them also a Melee DPS archtype.
This proves that careers can be a hybrid of multiple archtypes, making it challenging to discover the full potential of your character!
Source: http://www.warhammeronline.com/
2.1.3. Appearences:
Also in the Character Creation, you'll need to decide how your character will look like. No official information is out on this matter yet. But most MMORPG's have had the same basic four options to determine your appearace:
- Sex
- Haristyle
- Hair Color
- Facial Features
There's no reason to assume why Warhammer Online shouldn't have the same four basic options. There are a lot of screenshots out there (mostly showing Dwarfs and Greenskins) that already show a lot of differences in appearance. And seeing the innovative nature of Warhammer Online, I wouldn't be surprised if they added more changable features. However, recently it has been confirmed that there will be no slider bars to change appearances to the extreme limit, however I'm sure a great variaty of choices will be available.
Source: http://www.warhammeronline.com/english/media/screenshots/
2.2. Character Evolution:
As in every MMORPG as your progress in Warhammer Online, your character will evolve and grow stronger. However, the devolepment team of EA Mythic have put extra attention into this feature. Many of the roleplayers amongst us are really relieved to hear this, since it will greatly help to make your character look unique and distinguished. It's actually one of the goals of the dev team to make sure no two characters will look alike.
2.2.1. Costumisation:
In Warhammer Online you'll be able to add some extra costumisation to your character as you progress through the levels. You will be able to die small parts of your armor, you can add accesoiries to your armor and thus make your character look different. In what extend this will be implemented is not sure at this point. I'm personaly thinking of tabards, symbols and emblems, a spellbook hanging on one's belt, etc...
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgnK1_yBQ5s
2.2.2. The Bragging System:
I placed this feature in the Character Evolution section, since it's part of the costumisation of your character. You'll be able to attatch battle-trophies on your armor to show the world how mean you are. Dwarven beards hanging on Orc belts, human skulls pierced on a spike of the shoulder pat of a chaos human, a necklace made out of orc teeth hangin around the neck of an Empire warrior, etc... It's all meant to brag. I can't discribe it better then Lance Roberts did:
Quote:
Thanks for clearing that one up for us Lance!
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgnK1_yBQ5s
2.2.3. Evolution:
Not only will the bragging system and costumisation make clear how bad- you are, but your actual appearance will change as well as you advance in tiers (levels). There's a lot of speculation going on about this, and recently we've got official statements on the matter:
- Orcs will grow larger and their skin will darken.
- Dwarfs their beards will grow longer.
- Chaos will have more impressive and decorated armor.
- Also Empire will have more glammy armor and weapons to show off their rank.
- No info out on this matter yet for the High Elfs nor the Dark Elfs.
Sources: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgnK1_yBQ5s - http://www.warhammeralliance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9158
2.3 The Tome of Knowledge
Anyone who is familiar with the series Charmed will recognise the Book of Shadows in the Tome of Knowledge. The Tome of Knowledge is a book everyone will be carrying with them. It contains all information you've gathered so far by exploring the world. If you meet a specific type of enemy, there will appear a short discription of this foe in your Tome of Knowledge. If you discover a new area, your Tome of Knowledge will be updated as well and might show a short background history of that specific area and a map.
Basically, everything you've discovered will be stored in your Tome of Knowledge: The palm computer of the Warhammer Online world. However, besides being a scrap book, the developers took the role of the Tomb of Knowledge in Warhammer Online a step further. Not only will it keep track of your achievements, it will also be able to generate new quests for you to venture on.
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J8XaEUuYzI
2.4. Means of Transportation
In every MMORPG, transportation plays a vital role. How transportation in Warhammer Online will be taken care of, is unknown at this point. The only thing we know for sure at this point is that every race will have a unique way of transportation. Screenshots of Dwarven Gyrocopters have appeared. Orcs are supposed to be shot away with catapults. There's also speculation about a selfcontrolled mean of transportation (read mount) and a specific transportation route (boat, trolly-train, god knows). As soon as more information is out on that matter, I'll make sure it gets updated.
2.5 Ways of expression
Read "emotes". We all know them as /bow; /sit; /wave; etc... Warhammer Online will have these emotes as well to support expression of a character. We'll just have to wait and see what our possibilities are.
3. THE WORLD OF WARHAMMER ONLINE
In this chapter I'll be discussing what the world in Warhammer Online will look like. What is your relation to the world? How can your actions affect the world? Also trading and crafting will be part of this chapter! But there's one thing you should always keep in mind while reading this chapter, and I quote:
Originally Posted by Lance Roberts: Producer Warhammer Online.
Everything in the game is focussed around that war. Everything you do, any quest, every mission you go on, is to support the war effort: your side versus the enemy." |
Now let's get down to business shall we?
3.1 Questing
By doing quests in Warhammer Online, you wont just only be gaining EXP and rewards, but quest actually are the backbone for the storyline in Warhammer Online. By completing quests, you'll be walking through the story of your character, unraveling secrets, digging up old myths and revealing huge complots.
Because the storyline and quests are so mend into eachother, the developers have split up quests into chapters. Based on your level, the amount of quests and their difficulty will increase along with your level.
There's two different ways to divide quests into different categories. I'll discuss them here:
3.1.2 Quest Radius:
The first way is by their "radius": how far the quest will take you into the wide world of Warhammer, and how much of the story the quest will reveal. Using this factor, you can devide quests into 3 different groups:
- Charges: Charges have a small radius. A charge is a chapter in the story of Warhammer Online and when you've finished the quest, you've finished the chapter. They stand on their own, are easy to complete and reveal just a small amount of the story line. Basicaly they create the atmosphere for larger quests.
- Adventures: Adventures will take you further into the world of Warhammer Online. They connect different chapters of the storyline in a specific levelrange and unravel a lorge chunk of the plot of a story. Adventures are there to warm you up for the final kind of quest based on radius:
- Epic Quests: These quests are woven all the way through all your levels. They connect a massive amount of chapters throughout your whole career. They're enormous, time consuming and they reveal the actual plot of the storyline of WAR. They'll take you all over the world and you'll meet all the major notorious NPC's of the Warhammer universe.
3.1.2 Content:
The second way to categorize the different quests is just by their content. By this way, we can differntiate five types of quests:
- Kill Collectors: As already explained, your Tome of Knowledge will always keep track of how what kind of mobs you've killed and how many. This information might come in handy for Kill Collectors. Suppose an NPC asks you to kill as much wolves as possible. If you haven't killed a wolf ever yet, then you'll set out, kill 50 wolves, return to the NPC and he'll reward you for the job well done. You can then go kill some more for an even bigger reward. However, if you've killed 150 wolves before you spoke to the NPC, you'll get rewarded for those 150 as well! You can always keep track of this in your Tome of Knowledge. Your Tome of Knowledge is also enough proof for these NPC's, they wont ask you to bring wolf tails as proof you killed wolves...
- Tome Quests: As already stated before, if you unlock certain chapters in your Tome of Knowledge, it might generate a quest for you. This is the only information EA Mythic is giving about Tome Quests atm.
- Exploration Quests: Exploration Quests are there for players who actually try to discover the whole world of Warhammer Online. In your voyage of exploration, you might stumble upon a random event wich results in a quest. They'll generate great rewards, for little effort.
- RvR Quests: This type of quest is specificaly designed for the RvR areas present in each zone. An NPC there will ask you to complete RvR related tasks, such as killing an X amount of players, setting up traps, collecting limbs and skulls of the enemy, etc...
- Public Quests: Public Quests are linked into a specific area. If you walk in that area, you will automatically be given a quest wich has to do with the story of that specific area. Everyone that enters that specific area is given literally the same quest whether you're grouped or not you will be working together on this quest. If it says, for example, kill 15 snotlings, then each time anyone in that area kills a snotling, your counter will go up. In Public Quests you'll be rewarded in 2 different ways. First of all there's contribution. If you got the mission to kill 15 snotlings and you've killed 10 and someone else has killed 5, then your reward will be bigger at the end of the quest, since you contributed more. The second way to be rewarded is based on your influence. An NPC will keep track of your actions in Public Quests. So if you are the one that killed 5 snotlings in stead of 10, but you've killed a lot more in earlier rounds of the same public quest, your reward might be bigger then the other person.
That's all confirmed information out there on quests. All types of quests will contain the three forms of quests based on their radius, providing a wide variaty of different kinds of quests.
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J8XaEUuYzI[url]http://mythicmktg.fileburst.com/war/us/media/flash/pp_Quests_bitrate.html[/url
3.2. Rewards:
Rewards from quests and missions will be vary, depending on the difficulty of the quest. So far there has been official confirmation of three kinds of rewards:
- Ingame currency reward
- EXP reward
- Gear reward
This doesn't mean those three will be the only forms of rewards. It's the only three that have been confirmed. Some quests will even give you the option to chose what kind of a reward you receive: cash, exp or gear. A very promising feature.
Also, what irritated me in a lot of games was that when I finished a quest as a mage, wich took me to all corners of the world, I got an iron breastplate as a reward. None of that in Warhammer Online. Your reward will be measured with your career choice.
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgnK1_yBQ5s
3.3 Trading and Crafting
Also on this topic EA Mythic has not released too much information yet. The only thing they promise is a very innovative crafting system. Also all crafting will be done to contribute to the war effort. There wont be a recipy to make a flowerpot or to craft a straw skirt, it's war, everything you craft goes directly to the war. So in other words: items such as armor and weaponry.
4. GAINING LEVELS AND ABILITIES
In this chapter I'll try to explain how gaining levels, and learning abilties will work. It's something we're all very eager to learn more about, however, it's one of the hardest things to explain. So bare with me.
I also feel the urge to indicate that not everything written here will comply with the truth and how it will be once the game is released. Specialy this chapter is a gathering of official information, and gaps have been filled with logic, speculations and assumptions. So please, do not think this is holy information. I could be wrong.
Anyways, that being said, let's grab the cow with the horns and get down to business.
4.1 Gaining Experience Points, Ranks and Tiers.
In Warhammer Online there are 40 levels. However, they wont be called levels, but ranks, devided in four Tiers. So ten ranks per tier starting from Tier 1/Rank 1 and Tier 4/Rank 10 being the cap at this moment. Tiers will be important in the RvR system, as will be explained later on.
To advance in ranks, and eventually tiers, you will have to gather experience points. You can gain these Experience Points (also refered to as EXP) through three different ways:
- Defeating an NPC through PvE
- Defeating a PC through PvP
- As a reward for completing a quest
There might be other means to gather EXP in Warhammer Online, but they've not been confirmed yet.
So yes, you will be able to gain ranks and tiers through PvP only if you do not like PvE at all. How and where the line lies between PvP and PvE is irrelevant to this chapter and will be explained later on. Important here is to remember that, yet again, Warhammer Online is all about your own choices and preferences.
4.2 Abilties
There are 3 kinds of abilties in Warhammer Online:
4.2.1 Action Abilities:
Action Abilities are the core abilties of a specific class. When you gain ranks, along the way, you'll be gaining action abilities. Once you hit the maximum level, you will have received ALL action abilities available to your career. Action Abilties define you as a Zealot Priest or Warrior Priest.
4.2.2 Tactic Abilities:
When you are gaining experience, you'll also receive Tactic Points. With these tactic points you can buy tactic abilities. Tactic abilities are abilities that can be very usefull in specific situation. They'll increase your power to be able to handle specific situations. Basicaly there are three categories of tactic abilities:
- Career Tactic Abilities: These tactics will increase your power in all features of the gameplay, meaning you'll be able to use them in both RvR as PvP.
- Renown Tactic Abilities: This kind of tactics can only be used in RvR situations and will increase your power specificaly in RvR. These tactics can not be used in PvE.
- Tome Tactic Abilties: This type of tactic is specificaly designed for PvE situations, it will only be usable in PvE and will increase your power there only.
You can only use seven tactics at once, and you can only swap tactics between battles. Once you engage in a battle, you wont be able to change tactics. At all time you can have a maximum of 4 Career Tactics, 2 Renown Tactics and 1 Tome Tactic. This allows you to create a wide variaty of different set of tactics, making your Zealot Priest very much different from your friend's Zealot Priest!
4.2.3 Morale Abilities:
The same as with Tactic Abilities: when you're progressing through the levels, you'll also gain Moral Points along with Tactic Points. With a specific amount of Morale Points, you can buy Morale Abilities. Morale abilties can only be accessed during combat. As you fight, you'll build up morale, and when you've gathered a certain amount of morale, a Morale Ability will become available to you. You can have 4 Morale Abilties in your set of Morale Abilities. When you gain 20 (numbers are examples) Morale during a fight, you can use your first Morale Ability. However if you decide not to and gain another 20, you can use your second morale ability. Your second Morale ability is a lot more powerfull then your first. However, if you don't want to waste all your moral, you can also decide to use your first Morale Ability twice. This goes all the way up to your fourth and most powerfull morale ability. For each slot, there are different kinds of Morale Abilties. There are 3 different kinds of Morale Abilties:
- Career Morale Abilities:
These are the Morale abilities specific for your career. These Career Morale Abilities are the same for your Zealot Priest, as the Career Morale Abilities of your friend's Zealot Priest.- Archetype Morale Abilities:
These are the Morale abilities specific for your archetype. These Archetype Morale Abilities are the same for your Damage DPS archetype as the Archetype Morale Abilities of your friend's Damage DPS archetype.- Racial Morale Abilities:
Yes indeed, these are the Morale Abilities specific for your race. They're the same Racial Morale abilties your Dark Elf has as those of your friend's Dark Elf.
4.2.4. The Catch!
You are probably wondering now, why are Tactics and Morales not just ordinary Action Abilities? Well it's simple: In your whole career you'll gain ALL your Action Abilities, however you wont gain enough Tactic and Morale points to buy all Tactic Abilties and Morale Abilities. So you'll have to make a choice and make it wisely!
4.2.5. A summary:
In PvP situations, your character has the following abilities:
- ALL the Action Abilities available to your class at that level. (this differs from class to class)
- Six Tactic Abilities (4 career and 2 Renown) bought with Tactic Points.
- Four Morale Abilities bought with Morale Points
In PvE situations your character has the following abilties:
- ALL the Action Abilities available to your class at that level. (this differs from class to class)
- Five Tactic Abilities (4 career and 1 Tome) bought with Tactic Points.
- Four Morale Abilities bought with Morale Points
4.3 The Skill Tree Structure:
The Skill Tree Structure is a grid on wich you can keep track of what abilities you've activated and unlocked with the points you've gather by gaining experience, rank and tiers. Per Tier, Action, Tactic and Morale has it's own Skill Tree. Thus there are three skill trees per Tier, bringing us a total of twelve skill trees when you've reached maximum level.
Have a look at this visualisation of the Skill Tree Structure. It's very helpfull in understanding this concept, cause I know it's all very complicated. Just read the explaination over and over again and keep staring at the Skill Tree Structure in that link and it'll become a little bit more clear.
Sources:http://www.war-rvr.net/calc/http://www.warhammeralliance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6422 - http://mythicmktg.fileburst.com/war/us/media/flash/2007-09_pp_CombatSystem.html
5. REALM VERSUS REALM
This chapter is actually what Warhammer Online is all about. The ungoing war between six races. Allthough their motivations might differ, they all have the same goal: Whipe the opposing nation of the face of the earth.
In this chapter I’ll try to explain how RvR works in Warhammer Online, since there are various ways the RvR is set up in Warhammer Online. Before I go on, please take a look at the next picture and study it for a while.
I’ll be refering to this picture regularly in this chapter, so keep it close at hand. On the image you see the battlefront between the Dwarfs and the Greenskins. Dwarfs represented in the brown color, Greenskins represented in the green color. Take a good look how they’re connected with eachother.
5.1 Connection between Tiers, zones and gaining levels.
In chapter 4 you read how I was talking about Tiers. You probably wondered then why they added tiers, since levels and ranks are practically the same. Well here’s why. Not only is your Tier connected to your rank or level, it’s also connected to the zone’s you’ll be fighting in.
When you start playing you start in the starting zone, d’uh. Well, this zone is called the Tier 1 zone. You probably noticed the numbers on the image as well. You’ll start in the zones with the number 1 in them. Those are the Tier 1 zones. They’re connected with eachother and the connection represents the Tier 1 battlfront between the Dwarfs and Greenskins.
Once you reach Tier 2 (or level 10) you’ll be able to enter the Tier 2 zone. This proces goes on untill Tier 4. The Tier 4 zone of your nation is connected with your nation’s capital, represented by the star on the image. So in other words, there’s no way you’ll be visiting your capital as a Tier 3 or lower. In order to enter your own capital, you’ll need to be Tier 4. Why this is the case, will be explained later on.
5.2 Connection between Tiers, zones and RvR.
You probably wonder now what this all has to do with RvR. On the image you see how the Tier 1 zone of the Dwarfs is connected by a line with the Tier 1 zone of the Greenskins. Same goes for Tier 2 and Tier 3. The connections represent the battlefronts between the two races.
Each of these Tiered zones has an RvR area and a PvE area. The lower Tiered zones will have large PvE areas and small RvR areas. But as you progress in level, the size of the RvR area will grow. So in Tier 4, the most part of the zone is RvR, and a small portion will be PvE. So it’s perfectly possible to reach highest rank by just playing PvE or only playing RvR. However a combination of both, will be the quickest and easiest way to reach maximum level.
Not only can you gain experience points through RvR, but also gold, gear and loot will be available through RvR. When you kill an enemy, random generated items will be lootable from their corps. So even for the sake of collecting some extra cash or gear, there’s no need to play PvE, since they’re obtainable through RvR as well.
The RvR area of the Dwarf Tier 1 zone is connected with the RvR area of the Greenskin Tier 1 zone: both RvR areas form the actual Tier 1 battlefront. The same goes for Tier 2 and Tier 3. Tier 4 is a little bit different, but will, once again, be explained later on. It’s in these battlefronts that the three types of RvR will take place. Another fourth type will take place in Tier 4.
5.3 Types of RvR.
Ok so we know now that the nations will clash with eachother in the battlefronts between the four tiered areas. But what form will this RvR have. As already said, there are four different types of RvR: skirmish RvR, Battlefields, Scenarios and Campaigns. I’ll explain the first three types of RvR here. Campaigns are connected with the special battlefront between the Tier 4 zones, so I’ll cover those in a different section later on.
5.3.1 Skirmish RvR:
As stated above, in each zone there’s an RvR area. When you enter those area’s you’ll get a message informing you that you are entering an RvR area, and that the enemy can attack you freely once you’ve entered that area. Once inside, you’ll be able to fight the enemy in a PvP situation. Skirmish RvR is the casual meet and defeat. You see an enemy, you engage him and you bonk his head. Plain and simple, no questions asked.
5.3.2 Battlefields:
Within the RvR areas of the tiered zones there will be locations of interest. This could be an armory depot, an outpost, a watchtower, etc... These constructions can be claimed by your opposing nation and form the Battlefields. NPC’s might be guarding these structures and also the enemy will try to keep you away from these battlefields. The goal is to claim the structure for your own nation.
5.3.3 Scenarios:
In Warhammer Online there will be Scenarios that can take place all over the world. They are instanced, objecive based, evenly matched battles between two races. They will be linked with the story and the general war theme of the game. When you enter an instance you will be directed to a lobby. In that lobby you are set up against evenly matched forces of the enemy. If not enough players from the opposing realm show up, then NPC's will balance this out. So for example. You decide to go do a scenario with a group of 10 people around the same level. You and your team are directed to the lobby where you wait for the instance to begin. If the enemy only has 5 people showing up for that scenario, then they will get help from 5 NPC's to help balance the battle. When that is done, you will get an objective and a time limit (usually 15 to 30 minutes).
5.4 Victory Points
Your actions in the RvR areas will not only give you loot, gold and experience, but they’ll also give you Victory Points. Victory Points (VP) are points awarded to your nation through your achievements in RvR. Skirmish RvR will earn you a small amount of Victory Points. By capturing a structure in the Battlefield RvR, the reward in Victory Points will be larger. By succesfully completing a Scenario the reward in victory points will be great. But what is their purpose you ask? Let me try to explain.
Imagine that each battlefront between the two Tier 1 zones of Dwarfs and Greenskins has a scale. On the right side, the Dwarfs add the Victory Points they’ve earned through RvR, on the left side the Greenskins do the same with their Victory Points. Once, for example, the Greenskins have gathered enough Victory Points, the scale might tip over in their favor. When this happens, the Dwarf Tier 1 zone will be under Greenskin control.
What’s the reward you get from this you may ask? Well, a small percentage of the Victory Points earned in the Tier 1 zone will spill over onto the scale of the Tier 2 zone. Wich in it’s turn will spill over in the Tier 3 zone scale. This means that Tier 1 players will be contributing to the overall effort in the war of their race.
Now, grab that image again. Do you see the blue zone between the Greenskin Tier 4 zone ad the Dwarf Tier 4 zone? This is the neutral zone. It does not belong to any race (yet). You also see connecting arrows from the Tier 3 zones to the neutral zones. These arrows represent the spilling of Victory Points into the neutral zone.
There are also arrows running from the Tier 4 zones to the Neutral zone. The Tier 4 zones are connected to the neutral zones and also spill a larger percentage of their victory points onto the scale of the Neutral zone. The arrows do not only indicate that, but also mean that you can fysically access the neutral zone from the Tier 4 zone, once the neutral zone has fallen under your nation’s control. Tier 3 players wont be able to do this.
If the Greenskins have an overal better amount of Victory Points compared to the Dwarfs, then after a while, the Neutral zone will fall under Greenskin control. This is the first and most vital step in Campaigns. So here we go ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for the crème de la crème of Warhammer Online: Campaigns.
5.5 Campaigns
As we read before the Greenskins just gathered enough Victory Points to capture the Neutral Zone. Once that happens all the scenario’s in the Dwarven Tier 4 zone will lock down, the Dwarven Tier 4 zone also falls under Greenskin control and a path to the Dwarven capital has been opened for the Greenskins. Two things can happen next.
In the first case, the Dwarfs gather forces, receive help from their allies and push the forces of Destruction back to where they came from. The Greenskins and their allies should pay special attention then. Since if the Dwarfs succeed in this, the Neutral Zone might fall under their control and the Greenskins’ capital might be danger then!
In the second case, the Greenskins and their allies push through and arrive at the gates of the Dwarven capital. Once this happens, a series of scenarios will be opened. These scenarios all involve the City Siege (as the community started to call these scenarios). These scearios will have set objectives such as: “Hit a hole in the city walls” or “Breach the city gates”. While these city siege scenarios take place, the remaining Greenskins will have to hold their ground in the Tier 4 zone of the Dwarfs, as the Dwarfs will keep trying to push them back.
Once the city siege scenarios have been succesfully finished by the Greenskins, all hell will break lose. The city is open for storming then. Hordes of greenskins will flood the Dwarven capital and plunder, loot, murder and destroy. They’ll even be able to fight your leader, capture him and bring them to their capital for a nice session of torture and humiliation.
The actual city raid will be real time, and not instanced. Dwarfs will still be running around trying to stop the Greenskins of causing too much damage. But once Greenskins smell blood, they’re in a rage, and this time the Dwarfs could not hold them back.
When the city is completely in ruins, the Greenskins will even have control over the Dwarven capital. However, this is not indefinatly. After a set time, the Victory Points will be reset, and the scale will be back in balance. Watch out Greenskins, those Dwarves cary a grudge for a long time...
Sources: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J8XaEUuYzI - http://www.warhammeronline.com/english/media/podcast/files/Tir-RvR_explaination_final.html-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h31S9wMGbhE&mode=related&search=
5.6 Keeps
Yes, you DaoC fans, you read it right, Warhammer Online will have Keeps! Now for those who don't know DaoC and keeps, pay attention! Keeps are strategicaly orientated areas at the border of RvR zones that form some sort of an open RvR Battlefront. When a keep has been captured, it'll evolve into a fortress of your own faction. So if you're an Orc, then your keep will look Orcish. If you're a Dwarf, well then, it'll look Dwarvish. But do mind this, (and I'm sorry to inform this to the solo-oriented players) keeps can only be capture by guilds. To reward their effort, they can even let their guild banner wave on top of the keep to show everyone you own it. When a keep is captured it'll start out as a small enwalled area with a few guards, but after time (and I bet after you invested gold in it) it'll grow larger and larger making it harder to be captured by the enemy. To aid your guild in defending and holding your keep, NPC guards will be there to help you fight off the enemy when your guild crashed after a long LAN party. Both the keep keepers and the keep siegers will have an arsenal of siege weaponry to attack/defend a keep.
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