Everquest 2 Player Diary Level 35-40 (Part 1)

This entry is split into two sections as it includes a great deal of zones. The dungeons of Nektropos and Runnyeye are discussed in some detail, along with Zek and Steamfont, which is far too much for a single entry.

As an aside, at level 35 Choraz passed the point where his namesake in EQ1 called it a day. I decided to celebrate by giving myself a surname. You can do this from level 20+, and essentially it just adds a surname to your character name. The game also contains Prefix and Suffix titles, the former earned from Achievement Experience trees or from city status, the latter from killing a lot of one type of creature (Hunter of Undead etc). Nice to have that extra layer of customisation of your character, so I thought I'd mention it even though it doesn't directly affect the gameplay.

I popped over to Steamfont at level 35 and killed a few things, but I spent more time there around level 39 so I'll discuss it in Part 2 of this entry. I visited Zek for a level or so too, to see what it was like. Impressions were mixed, but probably on balance good. The zone is quite distinctive. You land in a little outpost that is under siege from the orcs, which gives it a very warlike feel, and the rest of the zone is all orcs (Deathfist Citadel is at the far side of the zone). There are a number of quests in the outpost, at least three of which involve killing orc grunts. This is fine if you get them all at once, downright annoying if you miss one and have to do it again. Most of the orcs were blue when I got there, so even the linked mobs were soloable in the early part of the zone. I finished a number quests, then moved on to other areas. This is when I began to experience some annoyance with the zone.

This is the 'newbie' area (the fort is the player outpost), but basically the entire zone looks like this. Except with more orcs - no idea where the blighters are hiding in this screenshot, because there's normally loads.

Firstly, there's a LOT of orcs here, often very close together and with patrols. You'll often get attacked by a second orc when you're fighting, which might spell doom. I don't mind that, personally, but often the wanderers are heroics and that is just irritating. The respawn point is also STUPID, as it's on one side of the map and you have to basically fight ALL the way around the map to get back to your original position if you die anywhere near Deathfist Citadel. That needs to be fixed, pronto. Generally, though, there's a lot of heroics about. You know my thoughts on group content - it should be in out of the way places, ideally dungeons/instances, and the outdoor zones should be 99% soloable content (if you're skilled enough to single-pull it). It's quite a frustrating zone to solo in, therefore, but there is good Achievement experience from exploring it. Visually, the zone is...well, red. Lots of reds. It doesn't look bad, though. It gets depressing after a while, but it is meant to be the Orcish Wastes. And it does look like a wasteland, and it does look unique. So while it can be a little ugly and depressing, I guess that's the point. It could just do with being made even more solo friendly (it used to be ridiculously hard before it was made easier, but they haven't gone far enough).

Deathfist Citadel. Complete with lovely pink fireworks towards the rear of the castle.

I hit level 36 in Zek, and halfway to 37 I found someone putting together a group for Nektropos Castle so jumped right in (despite hating basically everything about the zone it was situated in, Nektulos Forest). Turns it that this was a good move. Though Nek castle was also an EQ2 release zone, it's actually very good and contains most of the elements I've been moaning about when I covered Fallen Gate or Ruins of Varsoon (and Crushbone, to a lesser extent). It's frustrating to know that the team were clearly capable of making good instances, but they just didn't...well, most of the time.

Most important point first. Nektropos castle is an instance. You go up to the big, ruined castle looming up ahead and click on the door, then you're in your own private instance. Bam. It's that simple. Inside, the courtyard is full of ghostly dogs and some gargoyles, with several doors leading off it. The graphical direction is nice, as the creepy castle feel is well-done, though there's too many small and pointless rooms. A minor complaint is I think it should be more grand, but that's only a small thing.

Nektropos castle - usually dark and gloomy, but shown here with lovely ambient lighting from the fearsome spells of my companions. And who said fighting never solved anything?

However, the zone isn't perfect. One of the big problems is that you won't know where to go unless you've got someone who's been there before. We did a full run with a couple of people who had (and had EQ2 Atlas), but it still took us three hours to do. With an inexperienced group, it could literally take all day. Anyway, we went around and killed a load of ghosts and zombies, when we killed a named mob and a ghostly woman appeared in front of us. She told us the story of her father, Lord Everling, and how he had her trapped in eternal torment in the basement or something. Point is, it caught my attention and we were given some direction.

Off we went, looking for the keys to progress. It didn't take long, as we knew where they were. You have to click the head of a boar and take the eye out, then run across to the other side of the castle and put it in another boar head, which gives you a key. Then you find another eye in a box somewhere and run back to the first boar head, which lets you open secret passages in the wall. It's a lot of running about (and fighting through monsters), true, but you feel like you're solving a mystery and unlocking the secrets of the zone. It's quite rewarding, really. Having said that, a group of complete beginners would never know where to go - the directions of your ghostly guide need to be more specific to keep it enjoyable for those without the benefit of previous experience.

Even the undead need time to relax and chill out with some chess or a quick game of pool, so every good evil master villain will install games room for his faithful zombies. I mean, it's not like their medical insurance costs much, is it?

Once you get through the secret passageways you find yourself in one of five towers that lead to the ramparts and some very confusing passageways that run between them. By the point, the castle is looking far more warped than it did at the start. Everything is misshapen and there are some neat perspective tricks employed. Gives the zone lots of character and makes you feel like you're getting closer to your objective. The next part, you have to kill the five daughters of Everling and take their necklaces so you can progress onwards to the basement. I really liked this part of the zone, as there are diaries and stuff over the place that show the last few days of the sisters before they were murdered. Then you have to fight their ghosts/zombies, and it's quite effective at giving the zone an evil feel (as the bedrooms are still bedrooms and the girls were quite young). Only problem is, again, there's not much direction as you can go to any tower in any order. There should be a set order you do the towers in, with each of the sisters getting harder to beat. You can get lost rather easily here, and end up clearing a tower you've already cleared (which takes a while). Going round in circles is always frustrating and can break the interest that was building in the mystery story. A rather impressive Epic level 40 monster appears in one of the towers, too, but it's permarooted so it's not too dangerous. Dunno why it's there, but it's cool.

If you're leading a group through a dungeon, this is NOT what you want to see when you round a corner. Trust me on this.

And then down to the basement, to free the woman from Everling. There are some nice monsters in there, with some strange animated dolls and the weird manakin that controls them, then to your ghostly guide. Who promptly betrays you ('my father will reward me for bringing him fresh subjects for his experiments!'). I didn't see that coming, so I thought it was good. Anyway, you kill her and some other guy who was apparently possessing her, then go down to Everling. I was expecting something great, but Everling is just a bloke in a robe. Again, boss visual design sucks (and the fight was also quite easy), so sort it out please. Anyway, cool zone overall and well worth a visit. Gained a level and a half, lots of Achievement experience, and had a really good time. The zone just needs less freedom, as it's too easy to get lost.

Part 2, Steamfont and Runnyeye.