Ozmosas

Hello Guardians,
I dont know alot of the new people that may not be new to the the guild no more because i have not been playing the game for a long time. Some of the older Guardians may remember the toon name Ozmosas.

Anyways i want some peoples coments on what is better or played more, EQ2 or WOW. Also i would llike to know what they like better because i am ordering a new computer to get back into the game now that i have finished what i was doing. In case anybody needed to know i enlisted in the military and i went through basic and tech school so i did not get to play.

It would be great if i can get some coments on what is preferred on playing and what will last the longest because EQ1 is pretty much exstinct. Thanks in advance.

--- Dieing is only Fake with the Dark Side ---

Ewan

Well, there is a lot of controversy between Warcraft, EQ2 and now Vanguard. Each of the 3 have their merits. I personally play WoW because of the play style and the folks that I'm lucky to be guilded with.

WoW is very well suited for the casual player, or the player that likes to do repetitive PvP. It has a lower system requirement, and has the largest current subscriber base in the market. There is no requirement to get a group in order to complete most quests, and to gain levels up to 70 (60 if you do not purchase the new expansion). As with any game, there are drawbacks. If you focus is in gaining levels, after you reach the top end there isn't a lot to do outside of questing for money, PvP, and raiding/grouping to get better gear. I've been told that the high end raiding scene was very repetitive before the expansion, but I haven't heard much since then. Tradeskills in WoW are "nicer" to me than EQ, but they aren't a complete system to themselves. To me they are a nice distraction, but in general the reward for the work done to make the items isn't very ... rewarding. Many people have stated that it's too similar to Diablo2, but you pay a monthly fee for it. In a way it's true, but I enjoy the world and it's very seamless and properly "scaled" to me. If your system can run EQ decently, it's more than enough for WoW. WoW is very stylized to a point where some call it "cartoony" though.

EQ2 and Vanguard as I understand them are cut from a very similar cloth. Getting levels is more difficult, and you have to group to get a lot of the quests and tasks completed. Supposedly the Vanguard has some really neat side stuff outside of the basic "hack and slash". Tradeskills are harder, but as I understand it more rewarding. They are a system upon themselves. Vanguard has "Diplomacy" which is a charisma-based "card game" system for interacting with NPC's that sounds really intriguing. Of these two games, EQ2 has the lower system requirements of the two, but they are higher in general than WoW. Vanguard has a higher system requires than EQ2, but the level of detail is higher. What I've been told is that currently Vanguard runs great on a really high end system, but it doesn't scale down extremely well. Both Vanguard and EQ2 are "photo (un)realistic" as I call it. They try to be as close to the real world as possible, using a lot of high detail textures to make this happen.

Each game has their own merits, and are doing pretty well in market. It's just finding the one you like. I believe that both WoW and EQ2 have trial periods where you can download the client and try the game out for a period of time. I know the WoW one is kinda crippled in that your interaction with other players is limited (no trading or mail allowed), but it would give you an idea of the systems.

Arryn

I would try the trials of each game if you can. I knew right away that WoW was not the game for me. The EQ2 trial is also limited, there is no mail and I believe no trading, but you will get a good idea of how the game is played. I leveled pretty easily in EQ2 and there is rarely a problem finding people to help out when you need it. A lot of us who have leveled to 70 have low level alts as well.

Austen

My suggestion would be to go to each of the web sites ( not sure about VG yet ) and play there free trials.

It's the only way to truely know which one "you" prefer. And of course there is no shortage of people who would be more then willing to help you or not help you depending on your preference. (not everyone wants to be power leveled) And of course we all (cept Aranash) have alts in every level range.

/insert a bunch of flames here, being careful not to spread my stupid opinons and hurt the feelings of others. K thanks,

EQ1 - Austen Dragoncreed 61 Cleric

WOW - Austen Dragoncreed 80(Protection) Paladin

SWTOR - Darkgift Sith Sorc (Madness)

Aion - Austen 46 (Templar Tank)

Dolby

Just to correct Ewan a little. EQ2 is more like WoW where its easier to get levels and you can solo 1- 70 if you wish and there are millions of quests. EQ1 and Vanguard are more alike where its difficult to level and takes a good deal of online time to do stuff.

EverQuest II is really different then EQ1 as its geared twords people that have less time. Much like WoW I can login to EQ2 with only 15 - 30min time and do something productive even at level 70. EQ2 has some really great quest lines, most of the ones you find at lower levels (1- 10) are fedex/kill xyz but when you get up in levels you'll find heritage quests, the claymore time line, and many other epic type quests. Also EQ2 has gone away from the bland "(un)realistic" colors with the latest two expansions Kingdom of Sky and Echoes of Faydwer. As you gain levels you also gain alternate advancement points which you can spend on many different things to customize your charater and gain some special abilitys. You can also choose a deity and if you pray to your deity and sacrifice things you can earn points for special deity spells/skills.

World of Warcraft also has some nice quest lines and again many of the lower level quests are fedex/xyz then ramp up as you level. The graphics are in a totally different and creative style then any other mmo. If you are in to PvP this game has a great system in place for it as well. WoW has a scripting system (lua) for their interface witch allows for major customizations and even little mini apps to help you. WoW also runs on OSX if you have a mac that is up to date, you can also get WoW to run on linux.

Both WoW and EQ2 are great games. EQ2 just fits me a little better. Best to just try them out for your self. GoV is on the befallen server in EQ2 and the bloodhoof server in WoW.

EverQuest II Free trial

World of Warcraft Free Trial

Thaadius

HEY OZZY! long time no see. im glad everything is going good with ya! I myself only play EQ2 and enjoy it alot. Im not a huge fan of WoW or Vanguard. WoW is a bit too childish looking for my taste and Vanguard does seem like EQ1 with better grafix (been down that road). Reguardless of what game you decide to play its good to see ya again! As for the PC stuff I am building a new AMD (dual core maby) PC w/ SLI (maby). EQ2 takes alot of power for it to look good. WoW is a little less grafix intense but still looks good. And Vanguard is about as grafix intense as EQ2. IMO.

Pepto

Good to see you around, Oz! I play WoW as of now but many of our GoV family plays EQ2 and WoW so you will have a great time either way. I hope you can find the right fit and keep in touch.

Ghowin Armory

Denise

Good to cya Oz u would have known me as Auditu hehe, i love eq2 wasn't interested in the other's, just made a Fae ,pally she can fly hehe lots of fun, ts is a lot better then eq so r the quest lines etc most of us have low chars also we can mentor down to help u if u need we can help u get fitted up with armour weapons etc as we have a lot of t7 ts ppl =) we also get houses now and can furnish them hehe , u can put box's in your houses to store thing in or to sell from its grt fun =) hope to cya arround

Ozmosas

Hey thanks for all the different inputs. It really helps. Nice to hear from you all again Thaad, Auditu, Pepto. As of right now i am leaning towards EQ2 because the little bit that i have seen of WoW its really cartoony and i would really like to play with older friends that i know and possibly make more. Thanks for the info everyone, going to go eat just got off work.

--- Dieing is only Fake with the Dark Side ---

Elodarian

Also, DOLBY.... you left out, we have a guild presence on Vanguard...

There are currently 6 active players with about 4 alts each... We form guild groups and level each other as well as supply each other with gear.

The structure is:
Theramor = Guild Leader (inactive)
Elodarian (Elodarian/Zhenshou) =Guild Leader (active)
Horic (Felken/Hawck) = Officer
Xtike (Fizban)


For more info use this link: http://vgplayers.station.sony.com/g...dId=73014444232

In essence Dolby is correct... The game has been live about one month now so all the WOW kiddies pretty much have left. /Cheer /Clap
Those who have stayed are primarily mature EQ1, SWG, FFXI, UO, & Matrix players who can't stand dealing with idiots... Don't get me wrong, there are still the socially retarded players (I have to thank this guild for beating that aspect out of me!)...

{Below is my opinion and experiences, so please take this into account}

Worlds of Warcraft === An excellent game for hack & slash... Almost all the quests I have seen require you to either kill something or carry __X__ to __Y__... The game attracts the worst of the EBAY punks. I personally hate playing against the best that daddy's credit card could buy! While there are many good players in WOW the kiddies outnumber them by at least 2:1... Good luck getting a group if you don't have __X__ gear or are specced in __Y__ pathing for your class... IMHO the game lacks depth and you can level to 70 inside of one month of evenings and weekends!

Everquest 2 === Fantastic game... I love it and I had a real hard time leaving it. I still have an active Station Access Pass so I do log into EQ2 occasionally... Luckily SOE doesn't use the same server array for VG-SOH as for EQ2... So is VG-SOH is down I can play EQ2. My only real complaint about EQ2 is my fault... I don't play it enough so I don't have a lvl 70 to group with others... I leveled a Fae Fury to 39 (or am I 40 yet?) in under 3 weeks...
The crafting system in EQ2 is great, and much simplified... I love that but it lacks some of the depth of VG-SOH...

Vanguard-Saga of Heroes === Very much like EQ1 in many ways... Go figure since Brad McQuaid, one of the leading developers in EQ1. From what I have read about the game's delevopment, Brad has been working on VG for aobut 5 years...
In many aspects, I see VG as the true evolution of EQ1... Newer graphics engine and better quest paths... EQ2 always seemed to be a Square peg forced into the EQ1 hole... their lore seemed too contrived.
Since VG doesn't suffer from sequel-itis, it doesn't have to follow any set lore.
This game is a totally new game...
There are three main areas of the game:

Adventuring === Follow the hack & slash quests. You will level very quickly from 1 to 10 this way but GRINDING doesn't work... there just isn't enough experience rewards for killing __X__ monster 4 billion times...

Crafting / Harvesting === You can progress to level limit as a crafter/harvester without ever leveling past 3 adventuring (you have to kill a certain number of things to trigger the crafting/harvesting quests).
Please Note: While you can be ANY level adventuring to harvest you will not be safe to harvest in higher agro zones as a noob... you'll pull mobs like Heiken doing that!
Crafting is VERY difficult to learn and the manual doesn't really help. If you wish to learn this path PLEASE use the forums! Otherwise you will get pissed and quit... I am still learning tricks there...
Another aspect of the crafting I love is you can deconstruct items and obtain their components to create NEW items with totally different stats... The crafting database is still evolving and from what I have read in forums is approaching 13GB in size so far... As people discover new recipes they can modify that recipe to create somehting new... give that item to another crafter and he'll deconstruct it to learn the recipe and modify it himself... since no two crafters have the exact same stats the object will develop differences... Think of the crafting system of SWG... they took alot from that!

Diplomacy === As DOLBY mentioned... this game is much like CCGs like Magic the Gathering... the cards range from mana generators with no cost, mana givers (your opponent) with scoring, scoring cards that use mana and others I haven't discovered yet... This portion of the game is VERY annoying... but critical if you want faction in a city.
A couple of the rewards are: 50% off a mount... 14slot saddle bags, 10% bonus move horseshoes, 10% Bonus move Bridle (Yes they stack!) ... 50% reduction for the guild hall land site or 50% reduction to support costs... access to faction based gear & Merchants... Triggering city-wide diplomacy boons like +25% __X __ damage to all in zone, or +50 skill to __X__ Crafting skills... there can be MULTIPLE boons triggered and they last 1hr out of zone and 1 game day in zone... you see some CRAZY gear generated when this happens...
All in all, diplomacy sucks but you need to develop it... think of it as Gems while you're LFG


In the final analysis,
VG is a great game but they need to hire a competent tech writer.. the quest often leave info out... Once this is rectified the game will shine for mature gamers...

EQ2 is easily a better game than VG for the casual gamer who wants the choice of group vs solo... It has a background that EQ1 players will understand. Since VG & EQ2 are on the station access pass they aren't mutually exclusive...

WOW is another good game but its full of punk kids (If you don't believe me play the game and listen to the chat in the barrens)... There are many nice people there but unfortunately they're squelched out by the noise... But hey, 8 million players can't be wrong, correct?
Oh and by the way, I hope they have fixed the 5min average login waits... I have seen queues as long as 35 min...

Elodarian, Ranger of Tunare

{I am the Drive-By Newbie Twinker!}

Dolby

He didnt ask about Vanguard. He asked...

Aranash

Yes, the queues in WoW are non existent now.

As far as the WoW itself goes. Yes, there are kids playing just as many other games, and just like every other game you can choose to ignore people or leave channels. I honestly do not pay attention to channels unless I specifically need them for something.

In regards to old friends from EQ, there is myself, as well as Austen and his wife, Hillinghands, Eqwidow, and Lafe. There are others from EQ as well they just aren't as active.

Chose a game you will have fun in Oz =)

Aranash Anduril
WoW - Level 80 Paladin
EQ - Level 70 Paladin Retired 2/1/06

My Blog

"If you had one opportunity, or one chance, to sieze everything you ever wanted, would you capture it? or just it slip?" - Eminem

Ozmosas

Thanks for all the tips guys and gals. I do have another question though, what is the latest expansion to EQ2, and what one could i purchase to get most of them in one or at least close to. I live in Germany, Spangdahlem Germany its about 40 minutes from Lux but all you see here is WOW no EQ2 so i dont know what the latest is.

--- Dieing is only Fake with the Dark Side ---

Dolby

If you purchase the store copy of Echoes of Faydwer it comes with the entire game plus all the other expansions. The digital download however doesnt.