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Here is the first part of the information we got in the breakout sessions at the Fansite Event in San Diego. I've got a few more pages still to write up, so that will go up tomorrow. There's still a good bit of info in here on combat and magic.
Returning inside from lunch brought us to the next phase of our SOE visit: the information breakout sessions. Teams dealing with various aspects of the game came by and talked to us in a conference room. They gave a quick rundown of what’s new and interesting, and then opened the floor to questions. There have been a few other articles out already about them, so if I repeat any info, its for completeness and verification’s sake.
The first session was all about combat. Basically, combat is an active and reactive system in EverQuest II. The archetype tree, artisans and the Heroic Opportunity system serve to create a very interdependent system in encounters. A big part of this is the subtleties between subclasses. Each archetype certainly has their overall role, but classes and subclasses have varying differences. For example, under the Crusader class, whose archetype is Fighter and therefore primarily a tank is also able to gain spells related to healing or draining. The subclass Paladin will be more healing based, where the Shadow Knight will be focused more on life taps. Both of these subclasses are classes in EQLive, and are more or less derivatives of Fighter/Cleric or Fighter/Necromancer. This is not the case in EQII, both of these subclasses have their own spell lines. They’re meant to show the flavor of the ‘deriving’ classes, but still be unique in themselves. The Brawler class has another interesting distinction of subclasses. The Bruiser is set up to be a more offensive fighter with things such as dirty tricks, where the Monk will be very much more defensive. This provides a good variety of fighting styles, where though each subclass can fill the role of Fighter, in certain encounters and situations, there may be an optimal choice for subclasses based on their strengths.
Ranged combat was a topic of a bit of discussion. The system is still being finalized, but the feeling is that it will be much like EverQuest’s ranged combat, where ammunition will play a big role (making that artisan/adventurer interdependence very important). There will be minimum and maximum ranges for ranged combat as well, making the choice of ranged combat very situational.
Discussion of ranged combat of course brought us to the topic of Scouts. Of course, their set up is much the same as the above Fighter examples. Scouts are all about position and stealth, and classes define their stronger points. The Rogue class is based on positional attacks. This allows them to execute moves like backstab or ambush. Predators, on the other hand, are focused more on stealth, and can use a stealth skill during combat to surprise the enemy.
Of interest to me after hearing more about these systems were Bards. What makes them interesting in this game is that Bards are a way to get stacking spells during combat. A cleric will not be able to stack spells with another cleric, but a Bard’s spells will stack. This makes them quite useful in situations where multiple buffs are important. (This would all hold true for Crusader spells as well) Bards are mostly concerned with group buffs and some control spells like mesmerization.
Heroic Opportunities should be on everyone’s list of things to watch out for in EQII. This stuff is cool. This is the reactive part of the game – its not just patterned button pushing any more, this actually takes paying attention. The system is currently undergoing a major revamp, but here’s a quick guide to how it works, and how it will work. There are a number of starting combinations of skills which begin an Opportunity. This could be a one-skill starter (like a Taunt) or multiple skills to open up the next step, the combat wheel. Which wheel is chosen is based off a weighted, but random list of wheels for each opening. Around the combat wheel, all of the group members will see symbols representing a skill or set of skills that need to be executed to get the effect. Some of these are skills that must be done in order; some are simply a list of skills that need to be done in any order. There is a time limit to the wheel, and one can lose their opportunity to get the effect if the sequence takes too long. Scouts have a skill which can try to shift the combat wheel shown based on the wheels available for that opening sequence, to better suit the situation. The whole idea is that these sequences of skills may or may not be the easiest thing to pull off during an encounter. Some may be quite difficult (such as the timing of taunts, or heals), but for those, the reward will be greater. Some effects will be beneficial to the group, some will be damaging to the enemy. For example, there is one which does quite a bit of damage to the enemy in the form of an energy bolt, one increases the defense of the group, and one can grant full health and power to the group. So, there are a lot of opportunities to choose the right combat wheel for the situation, and a lot of ways to work in the risk vs. reward system prevalent throughout the game. It doesn’t seem to be as timing-critical as Final Fantasy XI’s skill chain (Renkei) system, but brings with it some of the benefits.
The last topic sort of related to combat was the topic of racial abilities. Currently, the racial differences come down to the different vision types, attributes and resistances. The team is still toying with the idea of more abilities for specific races, but they are keeping a major goal in mind: they do not want the racial differences to have a huge impact on play. There should be differences and flavor, yes, but each race should still be viable as whatever class the player chooses to be.
The combat session was over, and EJ Mooreland quickly entered the room to start the next session: Magic. This ended up being a nice transition from the combat session.
EJ’s quick rundown of the magic system in EQII can be summed up with a few words: less is more, but so is more. The magic system is based on a basic set of tools for each caster. These tools are the core spells that make each caster what they are. This may sound limited and boring, but variety is easy to find. Leveling as a caster brings more variety in the types of spells, and more spells in spell lines.
Some spells will be granted through simple leveling. This will be those core, basic spells for the character. Other spells will be quested or bought, providing a bit of customization opportunity. As a character progresses through Archetype, Class and Subclass, they will still receive spells based in their previous standings (i.e. a Necromancer subclass will still receive Mage archetype spells and Summoner class spells).
The biggest thing that brings differences will be upgrading spells through dropped or crafted scrolls. When a spell is granted (a core spell) it is typically at the level of Apprentice I (the lowest tier), but each spell can be upgraded into Master status (and there are different designations within there too… Master IV, etc). This brings all kinds of tweaks to each of the spell attributes, power cost, damage, etc. This is yet another part of the adventurer/artisan interdependence, as casters will be clamoring for those spell upgrades.
Upgrades to spells will mainly be obtained through artisans, but could probably come from quests and NPCs and drops as well. Every spell can be upgraded through the enhancement process. A low level Priest could possibly obtain a Master IV Smite, but it will still be based on that low level spell, and higher level spells will still be better.
So, the next article from me will finish up the info, ending with Tradeskills and Trading, Graphics and Art, and Questing. Then its onto the fluff with my experience with Dick's, meeting a good friend, and fun in the sun in Mexico. Thanks for sticking with me  .
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