Yesterday Qindaar set out to explore and do something other than Daily’s.  Daily’s are an important tool to leveling at a rapid pace, but it leaves much of the game behind.  If all your trying to do is reach that magic 100, then Daily’s are for you.  If you are truly wanting to immerse yourself into a another world, explore all the lands and visit all the weird places the game has to offer then you need to accomplish achievements and quests.

As I stated yesterday, Qindaar decided to go for the Hero of EverQuest Status.  This is an extremely long process and yes you need to accomplish things you should have done at level1, but you can breeze through those.  So far Qindaar has accomplished the first five of the 36 tasks in the Progression Portion.  So there is a long way to go.  Then there are three more major sections to do.  This is a long journey, but I am thinking of all the cool places I will be visiting and some I will be visiting again.

Vmalice and Qindaar started out yesterday afternoon on the daily’s, we died on the second set so we waited until the evening for Valmantia to join us and finish them up.  Happy to say Qindaar in now Level 89.  Time to dust off the spells that have been sitting in storage waiting for this day.

Now back to becoming a hero!

Joined up with our usual group last night to run Daily’s.  As I said yesterday, I was getting tired of them although the XP is still good, I am near level 89 now, could hit it tonight.  After doing Daily’s Valmantia asked if I would go along on the Tattoo Quest with her.  I wanted to but it was getting late and I had a bit too much to drink with dinner so I was falling asleep at the keyboard.  But that made me wonder, what could I do on my own that would be a change.  I found it!  Become an EQ Hero.  This is a four part Journey, starting with he Progression, then the Advancement, then Special tasks, then the conquest. See the adventure below:

Progression 1-5: Welcome to Crescent Reach 1-5: Ready for Combat 6-10: Important Errands 11-15: Making a Name For Yourself 16-20: Becoming a Hero 21-25: Welcome to the Moors 26-30: Battling Blightfire 31-35: Champion of the Moors 36-45: Welcome to Stone Hive 36-45: Short Sharp Sting 41-45: Welcome to the Mesa 46-50: Pranks and Research 51-55: Moving Up the Ranks 56-60: Ascending the Roost 61-70: Conquering the Steppes 65-75: Crusader of Scale 70-75: Disrupting the Mines 70-75: Exploring Vergalid 70-80: Monkey Island 70-80: Redfeather Isle 70-80: Maiden’s Grave 70-80: Jardel’s Hook 70-80: Deadbone Reef 70-80: Suncrest Ridge 70-80: Blacksail Folly 70-80: Assisting the Ak’Anon Strike Force V 76-83: Assistant to the Fangbreakers 76-83: Assistant Fangbreaker 80-85: Agent of Ak’Anon Strike Force V 75-80: Herald of Oceangreen Hills 75-80: Herald of Oceangreen Village 76-85: Champion of Blackburrow 80-85: The Army of Light 80-85: The Army of Obliteration 80-85: From the Fields to Kaesora 80-85: Storming Kaesora and Kurns

Advancement 1+: The Council of Six 1+: Love in the Air 1+: Boawb’s Jealousy 20+: Job Offers 20+: Two Gnolls With One Stone 20+: Stemming the Threat 30+: Battling the Bixies 30+: Makesn’s Plight 35+: Botanical Busywork 35+: Cooking With Honey 35+: Working for Warwing 40+: Dorina’s Love 40+: Madu’s Armor 45+: Ciodaru’s Love 45+: Bring Friends 50+: Ekaterina’s Lament 50+: Centaur’s Troubles 55+: Lucian’s Vengeance 55+: Adrian’s Calling 55+: While You’re Roosting 60+: Steppe Right Up 60+: Rebuilding the Portal 65+: Cleansing the Springs 65+: Rites of Passage 65+: Assisting the Crusaders 70+: Togswell’s Experiments 70+: The Depths of Vergalid 70+: Shield of the Otherworld 70+: Jonas Dagmire’s Skeletal Hand 75+: Challenges of Dragonscale 75+: Ladies of the Light 75+: Heirlooms and Loved Ones 75+: Cleansing the Loping Plains 75+: Vrald’s Lost Brother 75+: Purified Flawless Faycite 80+: Disrupting the Fortress 80+: Serving the Spymaster 80+: Initiate of Ak’Anon Stike Force V 80+: Gearing Up 75+: Curing the Corruption 75+: Defending Oceangreen Village 75+: Darkpaw Defender 75+: Cleansing the Temple 75+: Bayle’s Heraldic Crest 80+: Infiltrating the Armies 80+: Efforts of a Mercenary 80+: From East to West Commonlands 80+: Refugee Rescue 80+: Blood of the Fallen 80+: Phara Dar’s Grand Illusion 80+: Intercepted Messages 80+: Gain Audience with Jaled`Dar 80+: Jaled`Dar’s Request 80+: Baron Yosig’s Skeleton 20+: Wayfarer’s Brotherhood Adventurer’s Stone 45+: Choosing Sides 45+: Gift of the Keepers (only visible if started) 55+: Valor of the Keepers (only visible if started) 60+: Embrace of the Keepers (only visible if started) 65+: Power of the Keepers (only visible if started) 70+: Sanctity of the Keepers (only visible if started) 45+: Gift of the Dark Reign (only visible if started) 55+: Tenacity of the Dark Reign (only visible if started) 60+: Embrace of the Dark Reign (only visible if started) 65+: Power of the Dark Reign (only visible if started) 70+: Fervor of the Dark Reign (only visible if started)

Special 1-20: Graduate of Crescent Reach 21-35: Conqueror of Blightfire 36-45: Slayer of Stone Hive 41-55: Magnate of the Mesa 56-60: Raider of the Roost 61-70: Journeyman to the Steppes 65-75: Emissary of Sunderock 70-75: Spelunker of Vergalid Mines 70-80: Captain o’er the Buried Sea 70-80: Explorer of Dragonscale Hills 76-83: Champion of the Loping Plains 80-85: Strikeforce Insurgent in Mechanotus 75-85: Herald of Old Antonica 80-85: Tactician of Bloody Kithicor 80-85: Hero of the Field of Scale 65-70: Defender of Norrath

Conquest 85+: Hero of the Journey 75+: Reconstructed Werewolf Head 75+: Model XLII Spatial Temporal Oculus 1+: Serpent Seeker’s Charm of Lore 15+: Wanderlust Guild Loadstone 20+: Wayfarers Brotherhood Emblem 65+: Breakdown in Communication 65+: Tome of New Beginnings 65+: Assistant Researcher’s Symbol 70+: Trials of Mata Muram 70+: Slipgear’s Gem 70+: The Depths of Darkhollow 75+: Efreeti Death Visage 75+: Katta Castrum Portal Activation 75+: Tsaph Katta’s Urn of Rejuvination 70+: Arena Champion’s Badge 65+: Coldain Historical Seal 65+: Black Orb of Scrykin 65+: The Chalice of Life 75+: Ancient Faycite Bone Circum 75+: Blessed Celestine Faycite 75+: Cursed Obsidian Faycite 75+: Valthun’s Memory Shard 75+: Lantern O’ Wisps 75+: Rallosian Battle Figure 80+: Dark Soul Crystal 80+: Timeshear

Qindaar, Vmalice, Valmantia and their son Skanton Boy have all been doing Daily’s nightly.  We have explored Morrell’s Castle but have had only enough play time to tackle Daily’s.  I think it is time for EQ to change Daily’s, getting tired of killing the same things over and over.  I hope they address this soon.

On a brighter side, EQ has started their Halloween theme, “Nights of the Dead”  so Qindaar needs to jump in there and take advantage of the extra offerings:

This may look like a screen shot of a video game Candyland, but it is not.  This is a place filled with fun looking sweets that lead to death. Valmantia had this brilliant idea to head out to “what she called Candyland” aka Morell’s Castle.  It took us all Friday night just to get there and find it.  Of course we had to die several times on the way, but hey that is the name of the game.  We finally catch a slight glimpse from afar of the candy canes only to die upon seeing Candyland.  We died so many times that Vmalice had us all go back to the Guild Lobby and he summoned our corpses.

Saturday evening comes along, I was a bit late getting into the game since I had to attend a birthday dinner for our neighbors dog Maggie, she turned two.  It was a great meal at one of my Favorite restaurants – Jakes’s. I log in late, Valmantia and Vmalice are already in Candyland, alas to join them meant that I had to run from the Guild Lobby all the way there on my own.  I fired up my invisibility spell and set out.  I luckily remembered the way and believe it or not I made it to there sides only to die picking up the quest because some Gingerbread Man didn’t like me.  Once I was rezzed we fought for a while, but by then it was late so we called it a night.  Tomorrow we are heading back to finish the quest.

I did ask Valmantia on Friday night if a candy cane was worth dying for and we all had a big laugh, but this place is no laughing matter.  I am sure I will have more to write on this zone.

Qindaar teamed up again last night with Valmantia and Vmalice for mayhem through the House of Thule. We were fighting, we were dying, but having a good go at it.  We kept trying to take down the Named Treant Kijaemz that keeps killing us, but so far he has wiped us each time.  The XP was great and I thought I would make my next level last night, when disaster struck.  My mouse quit functioning properly, I almost had to camp right where we were fighting but I couldn’t even get my mouse to do that.  Finally I managed to get out of the game without dying.

This morning I started up the machine, no mouse. I plugged in a different mouse and it worked, so I launched the software for my gaming mouse, a Razor Mamba and the software would not load.  I went online and download the driver and reinstalled and now all is well.  Too bad though, Qindaar could have been level 88 today.

Thank you Vmalice and Valmantia for putting up with my issues last night!

Q-

Qindaar once again ventured out on Friday evening with his good buddies Valmantia and Vmalice to do the usual daily’s.  It was a good night because no one died until the end, but more on that later, and a good fight because Vmalice was pulling MoB’s like a maniac and we were handling them.  Here are some shots of the fights.

Also here is a group shot of us.

Qindaar managed to eek out an AA point that evening and moved up eight percent closer to the next level, so over-all a good fight.

After a while, since we completed the three daily’s we decided to go back to the House of Thule to take out some named MoB’s.  We were successful until we got cocky and decided to take out the Treant that killed me the other night.  Well we tackle a bit more than we could handle and the consequence was DEATH! for all involved.  We were going to go back again, but we had no buffs and in the last battle we only taken it down by 55% which wasn’t even close enough for a retry.  Give us a couple more days and we will get him.

EQ Video 15 Years. (click on EQ Video) to view

Great night playing last night, once again Qindaar teamed up with Vmalice and Valmantia for daily’s.  We fought valiantly with a death occurring, not from a fight but zoning into it in the House of Thule-Grounds.  A named Treant took us all out in almost one blow.

Qindaar started the day by doing a level 80 Daily, unknowingly you must take all the daily’s you are planning to do at one time for each level.  Once you start there is no going back to get more, so last night Qindaar tagged along for the regular XP.  He got an AA point and a four percent boost to the next level.  So there was a lessoned learned there, take all the daily’s at once.

House of Thule-Grounds was hopping last night, the MoB’s seemed overly aggressive, everytime we turned around we were being attacked.  Finally we sat at the zone in for a few minutes for a restroom break, cigarette break or let the dogs out break, but when Vmalice returned he told us to stay put until he found a spot, once he did we all ran over to him.  Vmalice pulled like a champ last night without getting us killed.  As a matter of fact Valmantia asked him to pull faster, it was an awesome ongoing battle for about 35 minutes.  Finally it was time to go because RL was calling…actually the bed was calling.

It’s great to be back in the game again and I appreciate Vmalice and Valmantia there to lend support! Will try to get a group shot one evening to post.

Qindaar set out again last night with his good friends Vmalice and Valmantia to do the Daily’s.  There are three that we pick up, one in Old Bloodfields, level 85; one in House of Thule-grounds, level 90 and one in Valley of Lunanyn also level 90.  So in preparation this time around Qindaar made sure he did the quest to unlock the Mercenary Journeyman V.  No problem, got the guy and he performed admirably in the face of death, protecting me twice by forfeiting his life.  Good Merc!, although he comes at a hefty price of 93 platinum every 15 minutes or one Bayle Mark.  Thankfully Sony puts Bayle Marks on sale every so often so I stock up.

So overall Valmantia and Qindaar moved up a level while we listened to Vmalice whine that he did not.  Well he is already way ahead of us anyhow.

There are many ways to play this MMO. One is to sit back, explore and visit all the wonderful areas of the game.  Finishing all the Quests in each City, etc.  The other way is to just Level.  I am torn between the two, there are so many places I have not visited, just as in RL and many times someone will say meet me here and I just get this HUH, I don’t know where that is.  I do enjoy leveling but I also like the exploring.  Torn is what I am.

Every afternoon Qindaar sits in the guild Lobby waiting for all the buff casters to load us up on extra protection.  This is what the Lobby looks like

This is a very important part of the day, without these buffs I would die very quickly if I made a mistake.  So I should quit writing and get back into the game.

Played for a short time last night, should have gone to bed.  Not even twenty minutes into the game and the first death occurred, not good for the rest of the evening I lost all the buffs that I had collected the whole day.  So now we are playing in pretty much the basics and half the group dies again.  Qindaar did not this time.

So we finish up the quest in Old Bloodfields and move off to the House of Thule grounds.  No sooner got there and poof Qindaar dead, one of the MoB’s could see through invisibility.  Qindaar laid on the ground while his cleric ran off with one of the other members of the team. All I could do is throw my hands in the air, pop back to the guild lobby for a summons and call it a night.

Maybe tonight might be better, but the last couple of days has seen little or no progress.