Age of Conan Impressions!

I actually have every reason to want this game to be good, no jealousy involved! I know people say you can't "beat" an MMO, but as far I'm concerned I "beat" WoW a couple years ago. I played the expansion for giggles a little last year, but it was pretty much trash and shat all over anything good about the game.

The reason I also have every reason to be wary of this one, though, is playing an MMO is a, well, massive undertaking. I can't just play it solo for 7 months barely leveling like you, man. If I'm not up there beating the shit out of almost everyone I aint happy! So yeah, I'm probably not gonna pick this one up. Spore creature creator comes out soon, so that should keep me happy enough. :p

No flaming swords and big glowy shoulderpads is just the nail in the coffin though... their exclusion offends me. I play an MMO to be a unique and special butterfly! Not Mr. Joe Shmoe standard soldier man, come on!
 
I have a bit of a problem. I've got the Collectors Edition, but I can't locate my Drinking Cape and Ring (though it says that I have them in my account)

Do I have to attain them through a special quest?
 
DEATH eVADER said:
I have a bit of a problem. I've got the Collectors Edition, but I can't locate my Drinking Cape and Ring (though it says that I have them in my account)

Do I have to attain them through a special quest?
Click to expand...

/claim
 
i might pick this up tomorrow
all my friends are doing it :p

...plus the combat looks fun and satisfying
unlike most MMO'z
 
is this game any good? has it been released yet? what are the reviews saying?
 
Impressions so far, this game is extremely disappointing. I wont even talk about performance and glitches those can be fixed.

The user interface is horrible, it is pretty functional but in almost all menus everything has some ugly texture applied to it. The whole thing looks cluttered, made worse by the fact I didn't see a way to resize it in options. Not a game breaker though, I have seen worse a bad UI is just one of the things i notice in a game.

For all the talk about the combat it really doesn't feel that different. Run up to an enemy and start bashing your attack keys, remember to hit the right one after you use a skill. It's similarly boring and devoid of strategy or user input to WoW, the only difference being you can't go get a drink or something while you and whatever you are fighting beat each other with the same animation over and over for 30 seconds because auto attack has been replaced by the 1,2,3 keys.

You can assign three "shields" to lessen damage from one of three attack directions but this seems useless unless you know your enemy has a particularly nasty combo in a particular direction, and it is best to just leave one on each side. You can also manually block with the x key but because of the way the combat works anytime you aren't attacking you are at a disadvantage. The only time I can think this would come into play is when you are tanking, the problem being tanking is retarded and I thought the whole point of this game was to get away from shitty boring combat like that. I did notice if you tap a movement key twice you do some sort of dodge but these are pretty also useless as you come to a pause afterwards and enemies close distance before you recover, the only time I ended up using it was on accident and usually resulted in me taking a few free hits from the enemy.

The thing that sets this game apart from most other mmorpgs is the world it takes place in rather than its gameplay. I'm not very familiar with conan lore, from what I had been exposed to from book covers like this and movies it seemed like somewhat generic fantasy leaning towards homoerotic (not that I can't appreciate an impossibly muscled and toned half naked man riding a giant snake while chained to the ground) but after playing this game I think I am going to check out some of the books. Mostly because it seemed like a fairly interesting place in this game and I don't doubt the developers didn't do it justice.

Anyway if you like the basic gameplay of nearly every other mmo out there I would recommend this if you are looking for something a little different. And keep in mind this is only based on my experiences with a guardian and necromancer up to level 30ish and a lower level bear shaman during beta. Usually you have to do at least every end game dungeon before you are allowed to have an opinion on games like this and I haven't quite made it there yet. If i were to pay to play an mmo again this would be the one but I've got a drinking cape for anyone who wants it.
 
conan world isnt based on generic fantasy ..Robert Howard almost single handed invented sword and sorcery/fantasy decades before tolkein so if anything, fantasy after Howrd was generic to howard's work

the combat shines mostly in pvp where strategy and knowing which combos to pull off really matter ..the combat does seem the same in the beginning levels where it doesnt matter all that much but once you're in the 20+ range it becomes vital to know what everything does and how best to use your combos. Anyways to each his own
 
Yeah if you only played to 30 you won't have any 3-step combos yet. The combat gets better and better. As someone who rolled a Bear Shaman as my main... dodging and blocking are extremely useful. You don't seem to have noticed that double-tap also gives a buff.
You may not have noticed but the vast majority of healing in the game is done by HoTs. Getting a few seconds of lowered dmg incoming is great for letting them tick your health bar back up.

UI needs work, as do some bugs and one or two zones which seem to have memory leaks (Fields of the Dead) but there's a patch coming tomorrow which will hopefully fix a bunch.
My guild built our city's Keep yesterday :D
 
Eejit said:
Yeah if you only played to 30 you won't have any 3-step combos yet. The combat gets better and better. As someone who rolled a Bear Shaman as my main... dodging and blocking are extremely useful. You don't seem to have noticed that double-tap also gives a buff.
You may not have noticed but the vast majority of healing in the game is done by HoTs. Getting a few seconds of lowered dmg incoming is great for letting them tick your health bar back up.

UI needs work, as do some bugs and one or two zones which seem to have memory leaks (Fields of the Dead) but there's a patch coming tomorrow which will hopefully fix a bunch.
My guild built our city's Keep yesterday :D
Click to expand...

ffs, how many 80's do you have in your guild? the game is less than 2 weeks old, there must have been a rush to lvl 80. what lvl is your main at? I just dont have a lot of time to play; my main is currently at lvl 15 and I've been breezing my way through tortage as I'm familiar with every nook and cranny having played through it a least a half dozen times

if you've built your keep that means you've already built your guild city ..can you give us details/impressions around city building? how much crafting is there associated with city building? is it one building at a time like some RTS games? what server are you on? and can non guild embers visit your city? is it populated with npcs (vendors auction house etc?)
 
Eejit said:
Yeah if you only played to 30 you won't have any 3-step combos yet. The combat gets better and better. As someone who rolled a Bear Shaman as my main... dodging and blocking are extremely useful. You don't seem to have noticed that double-tap also gives a buff.
You may not have noticed but the vast majority of healing in the game is done by HoTs. Getting a few seconds of lowered dmg incoming is great for letting them tick your health bar back up.

UI needs work, as do some bugs and one or two zones which seem to have memory leaks (Fields of the Dead) but there's a patch coming tomorrow which will hopefully fix a bunch.
My guild built our city's Keep yesterday :D
Click to expand...

What guild and server you on?

I rolled my first character an assassin on a RP PVP server. Not sure what's it called.

Just got to Totrage or what ever its called. Not good with names :p and I'm lvl 6 i think maybe 7. Really need to play more of it tbh.

Edit: Can't seem to get on the forums, says my login not recognised. :mad:
 
Nabobalis said:
What guild and server you on?

I rolled my first character an assassin on a RP PVP server. Not sure what's it called.

Just got to Totrage or what ever its called. Not good with names :p and I'm lvl 6 i think maybe 7. Really need to play more of it tbh.
Click to expand...

you're about an hour into the game ..also you're either on the Cimmeria server or the Hyperborea server
 
CptStern said:
you're about an hour into the game ..also you're either on the Cimmeria server or the Hyperborea server
Click to expand...

Ok thanks. Still wondering if I should get another character. Not sure I want an assassin. Quite a few interesting choices.

Would be nice to know someone in AoC.
 
I've been really annoyed at the game since hitting 50. I keep running out of quests and have to end up grinding for hours to level. The only instance at my level is horribly designed, and it doesn't help that there's a bug that causes mobs to disappear unless you're standing right next to them.
 
Sedako said:
I've been really annoyed at the game since hitting 50. I keep running out of quests and have to end up grinding for hours to level. The only instance at my level is horribly designed, and it doesn't help that there's a bug that causes mobs to disappear unless you're standing right next to them.
Click to expand...

are you sure there isnt another zone you could be leveling in? ..I found a slow spot in connach between levels 25-27 so I went to tarantia and then to the wild lands to pick up quests
 
CptStern said:
are you sure there isnt another zone you could be leveling in? ..I found a slow spot in connach between levels 25-27 so I went to tarantia and then to the wild lands to pick up quests
Click to expand...

There is only one zone for 50-60, the Eiglophian Mountains. Others on the forums have been complaining about this as well.
 
in cimmeria? surely there's zones in aquilonia and stygia? I havent leveled past 28
 
CptStern said:
in cimmeria? surely there's zones in aquilonia and stygia? I havent leveled past 28
Click to expand...

Looks at the game's world map. The only zone in the entire game for 50-60 that isn't instanced are the mountains. As I said, the instance for my level is horrible. Not only is it buggy and laggy, but it's a public instance. I've seen up to 5 other groups in the same instance and it makes impossible to get anything done. There weren't even any other instances available that we could switch to.
 
CptStern said:
ffs, how many 80's do you have in your guild? the game is less than 2 weeks old, there must have been a rush to lvl 80. what lvl is your main at? I just dont have a lot of time to play; my main is currently at lvl 15 and I've been breezing my way through tortage as I'm familiar with every nook and cranny having played through it a least a half dozen times

if you've built your keep that means you've already built your guild city ..can you give us details/impressions around city building? how much crafting is there associated with city building? is it one building at a time like some RTS games? what server are you on? and can non guild embers visit your city? is it populated with npcs (vendors auction house etc?)
Click to expand...

Uh none of us are 80. By keep I meant the first building of the PvE city, which is called the Keep, rather than a Battlekeep :)

I and a couple of guildies are near 50 now (I'm 46, our highest is 52), I finished exams a couple of days before early access and don't start my job for another few weeks so I was playing quite a bit. Most of my guildies are <30.

I'm not our Architect but city building basically requires the architect to create the "plans" (expensive!) for a structure and then create the components from gathered materials - sandstone -> bricks, copper -> joists etc. (not as hard to get together as the gold for making the plans).
Once you have all the stuff you hand it off to your guild leader (unless your GL is the architect?) and he goes to the building sites in the empty city, and uses the plans and components in some GL city building ui to get it built.

So far no NPCs in this one building, though I'm fairly sure the Trading Post at least will have a few. We haven't tried having anyone visit our city, it's on it's own instance but it may be possible to invite people to the instance.

I'm on the Battlescar PvP server, EU english.

I can tell you this much, it'll be quite a while before there's competition for the PvP Battlekeeps since you need a tier3 pve city first. That is a LOT of gold, plus lots of materials which require a player to be lvl 80 to harvest.
The biggest guilds might get there before too long but there won't be any competition for the 9 spots per server for months imo.


Sedako said:
Looks at the game's world map. The only zone in the entire game for 50-60 that isn't instanced are the mountains. As I said, the instance for my level is horrible. Not only is it buggy and laggy, but it's a public instance. I've seen up to 5 other groups in the same instance and it makes impossible to get anything done. There weren't even any other instances available that we could switch to.
Click to expand...
I was under the impression that all the instances that branch off the gathering zones (Imirian Ravine etc) adjust to your level, so you can use them right up to 80.
 
God, this game sounds so ****ing epic.

It just might be the only MMORPG that I'll ever pay for.

My birthday's coming up... hm...

edit : HOLY **** IT'S 30 GIGS?!
Gah, I might as well buy another hd too.
 
well, i'm having alot of fun with the game so far and i haven't even left Tortage yet!
i'm anxious to get out of the newbie zone and meet up with my friends/guild mates
... only 4 more levels!!
 
I played at my friends house, and I was quite disappointed how the shield stance switching is slow (takes a second), and has virtually no use. Even if you predict that skill they use, and memorized the movement step to the skill you predicted, shifting the shield takes a second, so doubtful you will end up blocking it. What is the point of it honestly?
 
ktimekiller said:
I played at my friends house, and I was quite disappointed how the shield stance switching is slow (takes a second), and has virtually no use. Even if you predict that skill they use, and memorized the movement step to the skill you predicted, shifting the shield takes a second, so doubtful you will end up blocking it. What is the point of it honestly?
Click to expand...

If you want to put all shields to a certain side you can do it faster if you double-tap that shield key direction iirc.
 
I apologise if this has been done.

'Oooh, look at me, I'm Age of Conan! I'm a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, with a faintly medievel theme! Oooh!'
 
When does the Buddy program start?

Buddy Key The buddy key program will open as soon as server capacity allows. Please check back later.

So that means no key for me as of yet?
 
i think i'll just start playing WoW again. can't be arsed to buy a whole new game, allthough i have to say this one looks delicious.
 
Don't bother with shields, just put yourself in a defensive stance and get some nice juicy combos in there
 
I've made it to 60 now and I'm still having to grind a shitload of experience to level. My will to play this game is dropping rapidly.
 
Sedako said:
I've made it to 60 now and I'm still having to grind a shitload of experience to level. My will to play this game is dropping rapidly.
Click to expand...

that sucks.
are you in a guild? do you group much?
i find it easier to level and, overall, much more enjoyable to play as part of a group

or maybe you're just burned out
you're already 60 and the game's only been out for a week right?
 
B_MAN said:
that sucks.
are you in a guild? do you group much?
i find it easier to level and, overall, much more enjoyable to play as part of a group

or maybe you're just burned out
you're already 60 and the game's only been out for a week right?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I group for quests that require grouping, but I've run out of those quests. I don't get bored at all when I have quests to do, because they take me to different places. However, when I have nothing left to do but grind mobs in one area for exp, it then starts to get a little boring.
 
Any advice on the books? Fancy getting into the lore.

The complete chronicles of Conan: Centenary edition and what else?

Back on to the game, so there is not much high level quests? I thought most developers would of realised by now that people like to get to the higher levels much faster than before and the staying power of a MMO is the high level content.
 
Nabobalis said:
Any advice on the books? Fancy getting into the lore.

The complete chronicles of Conan: Centenary edition and what else?

Back on to the game, so there is not much high level quests? I thought most developers would of realised by now that people like to get to the higher levels much faster than before and the staying power of a MMO is the high level content.
Click to expand...

the original stories by robert e howard are miles ahead of books written by others so you're good with the complete chronicles of Conan ..there's a few books by other authors that arent bad but they pale in comparison to the originals



played for a few hours last night, just dinged lvl16 on my main; cimmerian barbarian (what else would I be?) on the Cimmeria rp-pvp server (I dont rp that's where my guild set up shop) .spent the entire time in the underhalls and only completed two quests ..the rest of the time I spent ganking or being ganked ..it's was hella fun to sneak up to a lvl 18 backstab him, run around a corner, hit the stealth button and sneak up for another attack ..I had the player jumping at shadows because of it ..at one point while he was waiting for a mob boss to spawn he ran in circles so that I couldnt get behind him ..as soon as the mob boss spawned and attacked him, I backstabbed the player, killed him then killed the mob boss ..effectively robbing the player of the boss kill that he needed for the quest to end. :E
 
Bah, join a real PvP server!

Stormrage PvP.
Diablo - lvl 42 Herald of Xotli.

PvP is what this game excels at.
 
...but I'm on a pvp server ..one that's populated with all the guilds that have been following AoC since day one
 
Nabobalis said:
Any advice on the books? Fancy getting into the lore.

The complete chronicles of Conan: Centenary edition and what else?

Back on to the game, so there is not much high level quests? I thought most developers would of realised by now that people like to get to the higher levels much faster than before and the staying power of a MMO is the high level content.
Click to expand...

There's a bunch of level 80 stuff it seems but apparently the devs adjusted the levelling curve post-40 sometime lateish in beta. There aren't currently enough quests to keep you going so you'll have to grind mobs/instances at times to get to the endgame content.


Out of the non-Howard stories Robert Jordan's ones are pretty decent imo.
 
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