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DDO questions
zspawn
Member Posts: 410
Hi guys
I posted here before when I was searching a game for me and gf 6 months ago or so...
We ended up in LOTRO even if I did buy DDO for 4.99 special offer or something but didn't play more than a week and not fully.
I'm kinda getting itchy to renew it but I'm not sure it's what I'm looking for.
I *love* dungeon crawling and raiding in general (not powergaming + rushing + elitism) and apart from WoW (which I said I won't renew again) I can't find any other game to play like that.
I did like the DDO combat when I tried it and I'm wondering if it's even remotely close to pen and paper (atmosphere/adventure wise, I know it's different in rules and how it works in mechanics).
Are there people still playing the game now ? I'm kinda worried since I feel I'm starting late if I renew...
Edit: I'm on EU part of the game :P
Comments
I just started a month ago and there doesn't seem to be a shortage of people in the low level zones. That's on the American servers though.
You didn't say if you're still playing with your gf or not. I play games exclusively with my wife. So far DDO has been a good fit for us. We have played WoW, LotRO, TR, GW, HGL, AoC, CoX, and WAR as a duo. DDO has been one of the better ones if not the best one for how we play. We usually play in 2-4 person groups. The challenge level has been about right. Our small group of new players (brought a couple friends with us) lets us take our time and truly enjoy the DDO content without rushing.
I do play with my gf but we solely play LOTRO together.
However we are gonna be apart for couple of months so we wont be playing much together - Plus I found myself to have the extra 15$ to spend per month so why not
But yeah to sum it up I'm going solo on DDO, not playing with gf.
EU servers have always been reasonably busy, but since Mod 8 there has been a noticeable increase in people, the NPE (new player experience) seems to be working.
Is there a Mod9 coming soon btw ?:)
But we all know Mod 9 can be delayed. It has many improvements and changes, seems like a huge addition to the game, so there may be problems. But what's most mysterious is the adventuring content of Mod 9. We heard nothing about it since maybe six months
. Strange, eh?
Only thing we know "for sure" (?) adventure-wise is that the game will receive 4 new levels of experience, from 16th to 20th --> this means finally reaching the max from D&D 3.5 Edition Player's Handbook.
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Sounds good,
I tried out the new starting area and i see the game is more user friendly now...at least so far
)
Can someone let me know how higher level content is? How complicated etc. ?
And also do classes get new spells or just boosts? So far I'm getting spells that boost this or the other stat.
Higher level quests may require more tactics.. (and require more gear) but the essentials are the same.
What class are you leveling up in?
oh my!
Higher level content is pretty damned good and certain dungeons can be very demanding. I think it provides the best challenge and experiance that could be had from directed content in an MMO. I have yet to play an MMO that even remotely accomplishes what Turbine has perfected in DDO. I'm not saying that it's perfect just that when it does well is vastly superior to other MMO's.
How characters level up and you'r able to build them is one of the strengths of DDO. Once you play it enough to see how it works you're going to be dissapointed in those other MMO's.
I tried Lord of the Rings Online last week in an attempt to see what was great about it and have been left to assume it's nothing that's seen in the starter area 'cs it seemed stale, static and extremely generic. And as for the graphics, I think DDO looks better in many regards, but that includes DX10.
*edit: I wanted to clarify my above statement about being "pretty damned good"; DDO is designed with the intent that players will be repeating the content. To enhance this there are certain aspects about some of the content which reward repeated completions in the form of loot, collectibles or exp. There are some extremely good dungeons at all stages of the game regardless of the levels. I think the real question was more related to the End Game content which is still good keeping in mind that the foundation of the content is designed to support players who run quests multiple times. Being that it accomplishes this goal for the most part, it's pretty damned good.
LOTRO is a great open world MMO and not as static or generic you may think
Anyway it's a different game tho from what I see
I suppose DDO is a constant dungeon crawl - Which is great :P
Soemtimes I just wanna jump in and do a dungeon instead of questing...
BTW I rolled a Fighter and a Ranger to see how they do, so far I haven't really noticed differences in ease of play. Everything dies one hit so far :P
The new player experience is not meant to be hard. If it was people would quit in frustration. The goal is to teach you about the game and give you some solid starting gear that 3 years ago was nowhere to be found.
Yes I know and I applaud that personally but I meant that so far I wasn't challenged so I can't really tell what's different per class
Once you get to quests like Kobolds new ringleader and Durks got a secret you will find the challenge goes up a little. Get a small group and do those on hard or elite and it is quite fun.
Ok thanks for advice
Btw any recommendations on classes that are easier to play ? Or any I should avoid at all costs ?
Later on, on higher level quests, it all seems to start even out. I mean, without a rogue traps will be killer, sometimes lowering your strength to 8 ;P, and without crowd controller like Wizard it could be hard work. Not mentioning some good healing, it will be needed too
.
But the best advice I think is to check the "Solo Ability" of classes in Character Generator. It's pretty good estimation for a new player. But anyway, I'd suggest to choose your favorite class no matter what
. If you find it too hard (on Khorthos? I doubt it), you can try something simpler first.
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For your first character I wouldn't recommend a arcane caster class (wizard/sorc) they are the hardest to solo with. Although I am partial to wizards since my first char was one, but I did have a RL friend who was a fighter so we had balance. I would say go any melee for your first char then if you find them boring change up to something else.
At higher lvlsit seems I die less then most melee classes. I hang out in the back and drop fire walls then jump through them if a monster is chasing me... That is ofcourse if my PK, disinagrate or flesh to stone does stop them cold
Next lvl I get finger of death then its really on
-Almerel
Hello my old friend.
Ok I played 2-3 days now the game is good but I can't stop wondering - What's so different from Guild Wars except combat mechanics ?
I played GW for a week or so and DDO trialed for a week or so (in total) and I'm wondering if it's worth the subscription since it feels so similar to GW ?
Help me out here! Someone who played both preferably
I agree that it does share a lot with GW. Similar instancing, both have lots of scripted events in the instances, both have good graphics. But there are some huge huge differences that IMO put DDO head and shoulders above GW.
There are of course some nice perks about GW as well. There are loads of players. PvP is more accessible. The combat style won't stress you out. It is cheaper. It is still a great game too so its a win/win choice.
Much appreciated are the bullet points !
Well I have DDO already just went for a trial on diff account
I also got Guild Wars (all 3 main packs except Eye of the North)
So cost isn't an issue
Something that crossed my mind,
How flexible is the character customisation ? Can I create a stealth sorcerer that carries a shield for example? :P
Or a rogue with magical abilities etc?
I believe that DDO is a great game but suffers from lack of popularity so a lot of people really don't know how far it can go
Could someone compare it's biggest group/raid content with something from lets say .. WoW ?
And last but not least, do tanks have to actively block by button press ?
(If they do that's awesome)
How flexible? Dude, you're going to have an extremely difficult time locating anything as flexible as DDO's character creation. My main character is a 28 point Elven Sorcerer at level 16 that has Light Armor Profecientcy and Weapon Finnesse feats trained, uses a shield, reserves melee attacks for debuffs while having full nuking potential. This sorcerer has an unbuffed Armor Class of 47 and can out tank most tanks in the non-raid content. If you wanted you could even combine 3 classes to create a Paladin/Rogue/Wizard-or-Sorcerer character that retains the abilities of each class. Other then the old Star Wars Galaxies pre-cu I am not aware of any other MMO with this type of diversity; EVE is comparable but nothing alike.
I do not like WoW. I think it's a mindless game with minimalistic dynamics to the character creation process and a grossly generic combat system. I'm not saying the game sucks, it's just that even though I purchased it and have attempted to play at least 4-5 times since yet it does not entertain me more then 2 or 3 hours. I've had a lot more enjoyment from playing Dungeon Runners which is even more generic but has a more intensity embeded into the game play but plays more like Diablo.
Active Blocking - yes! All characters can equip shields and block (press and hold SHIFT) regardless of their class and skill. Obviously, if a character is designed around tanking they should have better Damage Reduction when shield blocking then the average rogue.
p.s. There is a shield that is a hard to aquire reward named Fanion: +4 Twilight Mithril large shield with Magi (+100 spell points; +200 if used by a Sorcerer) and Greater False Life (+15 hitpoints), +6DR when blocking. I use it on my Sorcerer and there's no spell failure from using this large shield.
Sounds great and exciting
The only thing that kept me in wow was how thrilling the raids were...the first 2-3 times:P
Wonder how DDO compares.
I played some LOTRO dungeons and they're breathtaking. If DDO is of the same quality (considering it's made by Turbine also) then I'm sold :P
Prepare to be sold then
I didn't get far in Lotr but I know that the dungeons in DDO are stellar. As for the raids I don't think they're are quite like WoWs but they have their own uniqueness to them. If you truly like to dungeon crawl and make a char the way YOU want then this game is all you.
-Almerel
Hello my old friend.
I agree that it does share a lot with GW. Similar instancing, both have lots of scripted events in the instances, both have good graphics. But there are some huge huge differences that IMO put DDO head and shoulders above GW.
There are of course some nice perks about GW as well. There are loads of players. PvP is more accessible. The combat style won't stress you out. It is cheaper. It is still a great game too so its a win/win choice.
Completely agree here. GW is a very good game and fun but DDO has much better combat mechanics and the grouping and questing are much better in DDO. I played GW since release and basicly it was a single player game as I did 95% of my quests with henchmen because they generally filled their roles better than other players. DDO hirelings are ok if played by someone who understand the class they will be playing as well as their own. DDO the group dynamic is much more fun to play with then GW was.
I still have GW on my PC and do play from time to time but GM is so limited in equipment(as a loot whore I never liked the limited gear GW has) and while the 8 skills are good to keep PVP balanced they needed more for PVE as far as I am concerned.
Once you get a little deeper into DDO any similarity to GW fades and you can see how much better DDO is. I am waiting to see GW2 though as I think they will put together an amazing game when they get it together.
Thanks all ur replies were most valuable
By the way, how is armor in DDO ? I mean, style wise? Any screenshots of armor / helms ?
I love mean looking armor (not to brag about but to make me feel like a true warrior :P)
Originally posted by zspawn:
How flexible is the character customisation ? Can I create a stealth sorcerer that carries a shield for example? :P
Or a rogue with magical abilities etc?
I've been playing permadeath since the game launched (there are guilds out there that manually delete their characters on death
) I've yet to run out of builds to try, and I die a LOT 
. There is a program you can download to plan your characters ahead of time: http://www.rjcyberware.com/DDO/ . Play around with that for a few minutes and you'll see for yourself 
Except for the named loot, The appearance of armor is randomly generated just like the effects
Each type has a pile of shoulder/leg/glove/base/colors/etc... parts that are combined. Well, not exactly random. Warforged Docents are about 50% pink, but other than that it's pretty random 
Here are a few character shots to show some different armor types:
http://mortalvoyage.com/forum/album_cat.php?cat_id=3
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DDO Permadeath guilds