Warhammer Online Public Quests
One Way Mythic's New Online Game Seeks to Redefine the MMORPG
Aug 22, 2008
One of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning’s many innovative new features is the public quest system. These multi-part quests take place within the larger zones of the game.
There are often multiple public quests per zone, and all players have to do to take part is be in the area marked on their world map while the quest is taking place. There is no need to interact with an NPC to get the quest and players can run the quests as many times as they like.
Influence
Multiple run-throughs are actually encouraged, as players build up “influence” with each kill and quest stage completion. This influence can be used to purchase special rewards. In the newbie zones, the rewards are three tiered. The first tier is a buff potion, the second an average piece of armor, and the third a very nice piece of armor or weapon.
The Spires of Nathrain
The first public quest in the Dark Elf starting area “The Blighted Isle” is called “Spires of Nathrain.” In this public quest, the assembled horde of low-level Dark Elves must take on two waves of mobs while two drakes fight overhead before finally facing the sun drake Sunlathir.
In the first stage, players must dispatch 30 Northain Towerwatch soldiers. The Towerwatch spawn in small waves and are fairly easy to dispatch.
Teamwork is encouraged. All players involved in each kill receive their fair share of experience and influence regardless of whether or not they’re grouped. Only the first to tag the mob is able to loot it, however.
After all 30 Towerwatch have been defeated, stage two begins. 15 Northain Sun Mages must be dispatched. They spawn in groups of two or three and while they are slightly tougher than the Towerwatch, they still go down fairly quickly. This is a newbie zone after all.
In Stage three, the sun drake Sunlathir leaves the combat overhead and flies down to ground level to do battle. Sunlathir is a boss mob, with many more hitpoints and far more damaging attacks, including a devastating fireball that is strong enough to take out even lightly-damaged players in one hit. Typically, the players defeat her quickly due to sheer force of numbers.
After finishing off the last boss, players are ranked according to their participation in the quest’s three stages. Those who showed up late or didn’t contribute as much will be ranked lower. The top few contributors get bonus points that are then applied to the loot roll. Everyone who participates in any of the quest’s stages has a chance at the loot, but only those with the top three or so rolls receive any items.
The quest resets every three minutes or so, giving players who may have shown up late or wish to complete the quest multiple times for influence or experience a chance to quickly get back into the action.
Public Quests throughout Warhammer Online
This example is just one of several public quests in “The Blighted Isle” alone. There are a multitude of other examples throughout the game, some far more complicated and entertaining. With low-level content this amazing, it’s mind boggling to imagine what must be in store for players in the game’s later stages.
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning has a September 18 release date. Open Beta for pre-order customers starts September 7.
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