Grab Bag - May 2, 2008

Time for the Grab Bag!


Which defensive proc is better? Trial by Fire (Cleric) or Protection From Heresy (Friar)? There have been many discussions over which is better and which procs the most.

The scales of balance? Well there was only one to answer your question. The Balancinator did some comparisons for you: The Cleric spell "Trial by Fire" has a 10% chance to activate. It will heal the target for 126 points. The Friar spell "Protection from Heresy" has a 25% chance to activate. It will heal the target for 100 points. I will leave you all to decide which one is better.

I have a question regarding an ongoing issue with a character of mine. After every session of RvR that I do his RvR information resets after zoning to a new location or once I log the character for the day. Is this going to be resolved soon?

The Bearded Wonder nodded assertively: We are aware of the issue and we are working on a fix for it, no ETA as of yet.

Is there a different power cost mechanic for group heal spells as opposed to a single target heal? The level 34 Druid group spec heal (Restoring Conflux) delves for 60 power to cast. When my Druid casts this spell, it takes 9% of his total power.

On the other hand, the level 32 single target spec heal (Greater Resuscitation) delves for 66 power to cast. When my druid casts this spell, it takes only 5% total power to cast.

I have tested it over and over, and am sure that there are no other factors inhibiting the power cost percentage. My power did not regenerate at the time I casted it. It just seems to me that 66 power cost spell is casting for less power than a 60 power cast spell, unless there is some kind of hidden mechanic.

Knowing the costs of power The Balancinator did some testing and replies: The group heal will always take 60 pts of power to cast. The spec single target heal will cost less power to cast if you are healing a target with full health. I am guessing you were testing on a target with full health. If I am wrong in my assumption, please send in more info so that we can find out the issue.

I read the new Pendragon notes and I wanted to say great work on the idea of "offline leveling"

I am a bit confused about when the character actually gets the XP though. I know it builds up while you're offline but how does one utilize it? The notes mentioned you can check when you have enough for the next level for example, but does that mean I go to a trainer like a free level? Or does that mean I need to fight and just get bonus XP when I fight?

Clapping his hands together knowing this answer immediately The Bearded Wonder explains: The rest experience is accumulated while you are offline, based on the amount of time you are offline. If you logged out in a 'rest stop', you'll get the full amount of rest experience when you log back in. If you logged out elsewhere, you'll get a partial amount of rest experience. This rest experience is a pool on your character and is immediately available when you log in and is used anytime you would get experience from a mob or player kill.

I recently respec'ed my Cleric out of Divine intervention 2 into Mastery of Concentration 2. I thought this would give me a bit more versatility in being able to heal while I had aggro on me. Master of Concentration says that spells are 100% uninterruptible yet I still get stunned and mezzed while I'm using MoC. What's the deal? Thats being interrupted!

Concentrating heavily on his computer monitor, the Balancinator apologizes softly: Sorry, the realm ability "Mastery of Concentration" does not prevent you from being mesmerized or stunned. We will change the description so it isn't misleading. Thank you for pointing it out to us.

I have a 43 Valewalker. One of his buffs is 'Bristled Weapons', a 6.4 group Damage Add of 20 minute duration. I wear this buff all the time. I also have a Scythe style called 'Arboreal Fire' that procs a 4.5 self-only damage add of 30 seconds duration. If I use this style, the icon for 'Arboreal Fire' appears in place of the icon for the 'Bristled Weapons' at the top of my screen. I would expect this damage add to stack on top of my 'Bristled Weapons' damage add, since the style proc damage add is of less magnitude. Of course, I have no way of knowing what my actual damage add is at any given time, but when the 30 sec. is up and the icon for the proc'ed damage add goes away, there is no damage add icon of any kind at the top of my screen, IE: the icon for my 'Bristled Weapons' does not reappear. The fact that the 4.5 DA appears to not only replace the 6.4 DA, but to actually cancel it does not seem right to me. Have I found a bug?

The Balancinator nodded gracefully acknowledging that you did indeed find a bug: Thank you, it is a bug and we're working on a fix.

I can't find who to turn in the remains from Cerberus. I've tried all the Taxidermist in the Kaupang housing market area close to Haptoft. I briefly looked in Jordheim for a taxidermist with no luck. Help please?

Knowing all of the secrets of the Taxidermists, The Lady of the Jewels offers this help: Remains from Labyrinth mobs can be turned in to the following NPCs to be made into trophies:

Albion: Elkyrd in the Caerwent Market
Midgard: Bruhdor in the Erikstaad Market
Hibernia: Urlaun in the Meath Market

When I cast the magic resist buff in the Dementia line, all my magic resists turn green but don't increase on the character sheet. Is this a display bug? Or is the spell bugged?

After a bit of testing, the Balancinator confirms: The spells work fine. It is a display bug. I have entered the issue into our bug tracker and it is awaiting a fix. Thanks for the report!

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

We have some more Road Trip dates to announce for you. We'll be in San Diego, California on July 26th just in time for the Comic Convention going on there. We also have our Austin Road Trip stop on September 13th. Our Road Trip map is still in the process of being updated, but more details will be coming soon.

Speaking of Road Trips, the Bethesda, Maryland one is almost here. Word here in the office says that there will be Devs-a-plenty at this event, so if you have a chance to be there, don't miss out! It is on May 10th and we would love to see you there. Please RSVP!

The players of Gaheris had such fun during last weekend's Play on Gaheris event that they are going to do it all over again this weekend. If you are a veteran or new to the Coop server it's a great time to get some playtime in. The list of raid times can be found here.

Do you believe you are an expert in your class? Well we've got some openings in our Team Lead Program that we are looking to fill. If you think you have what it takes, Apply today!

The weekend is here. Have a good one everyone, stay safe.