Warhammer RvR Changes

Mythic's Mark Jacobs has posted a long explanation covering the recent RvR changes in Warhammer Online. Jacobs outlines several changes made in the last several months. Check out what he's got to say:

Folks,

Over the last few months I've spoken about our continued focus on improving our open RvR systems. While we have taken some major steps in the last month, we believe that there is much more we can do to encourage people to take part in oRvR throughout the entire evolution of their character(s). Over the next few months we have some very exciting changes and additions taking place. Please note that as always, this does not represent everything that either we are doing or thinking about doing, just what we, as of now, plan on adding to WAR.

We have a number of major initiatives planned for oRvR in WAR. Please keep in mind that these changes/systems apply to oRvR only and not to scenarios. This is not all we are working on but these do reflect the majority of oRvR additions that we are currently working on/planning for the next few months.

First, we have created an RvR Influence system. This system is designed to reward our oRvR players with lots of new stuff that you can only get through oRvR. This will be a complimentary system to our PQ Influence system. This system is already implemented in 1.1 and is scheduled to go LIVE along with that version in December.

Second, we want to improve the visibility that players have into oRvR and make it easier for players to get involved in the action quickly and easily. We have a number of wide-ranging changes going into our map and travel systems to allow players to better understand the state of oRvR in our game and also allow them to get to the action faster. We have already taken one step with putting a Rally Master in each Warcamp but we will also add the ability for people to have a second bind point to make it even easier for players to move around the maps. We will also make it easily for players to see where players from their Realm are engaging in oRvR, a Campaign HUD for all tiers and other improvements We will also improve Tier-wide messaging about what is going on in Battlefield Objectives and Keeps. Other additions include changes to the UI, in-game manual improvements, map enhancements, and a few other changes.

Third, we want to provide greater incentives to players to participate in oRvR. In order to accomplish this we will be adding additional layers to the questing system of oRvR including the addition of Keep Quests, "Daily Event Quests", Chained RvR Missions, improve the initial Tome Unlocks and other oRvR-oriented Events. We will also improve our BO itemization. Our goal is to provide players with even more incentive for participating in oRvR than we have already.

Fourth, we want to encourage guilds to take and control keeps, and we will continue our work on adding better rewards for Guilds who own Keeps as well as the addition of a system of Keep upgrades. This system will be added to the game in several stages beginning in the late winter.

Finally, we will begin work on a global oRvR "Fame" system that will be tied directly to the Tome of Knowledge which will provide more rewards, titles, experience, etc. for participating and being successful in oRvR. This system will provide even more incentives for people to participate in oRvR than the current systems and one that fits nicely both with the ToK's concept as "This is your life" as well as an additional advancement and reward system.

Please keep in mind that these additions are subject to change and given the nature of these changes/improvements, they will not go LIVE until we have thoroughly tested them. However, these are crucial improvements to WAR and are being treated as such by the team.

Finally, I want to close this out with a brief explanation about the role that we believe that oRvR should play in WAR. It's really as simple as this, oRvR should be a major focus for leveling, item gain, etc. in WAR. Some of the systems are already in place and in Tier 4, oRvR is alive and well. On other Tiers, however, oRvR is not being engaged in as often as we had hoped when we launched WAR. Our goal is to ensure that oRvR is the place where players can level the fastest, get the best items and overall, have a great time while doing it. It is supposed to be riskier, more challenging but ultimately, more rewarding than any other place within WAR. What is outlined in this letter are some of the ways we plan on making this happen over the next few months and beyond.

As always, we thank you for your patronage and support. We won't let you down.

Mark Jacobs
VP/GM Mythic Entertainment

Warhammer online guide: Shaman PVP Guide

Warhammer PvP Guide for the Shaman:

This guide took a lot longer then I expected, I figured about a week, however it has been about two weeks. I wanted to make sure I did not make any mistakes with the Shaman as I am not heal spec'ed like most people believe I should be.

The first thing I wanted to make sure of before writing a guide is that I was at least in tier three, this is easily made with the Shaman, as he is almost in tier four:

I also wanted enough actual PvP experience, so my second goal was to participate in at least 1k kills, since I am approaching 3k that was no problem at all:

The Good:

Extremely versatile class, switching damage dealing to full healer in the switch of slotted tactics. Decent survivability for a healing class. The ability to leech AP really extends the power that the class can deal, either by healing or damage dealing.

The Bad:

While I can deal out decent healing, I cannot even think about coming close to a virgin heal spec'ed Zealot, I believe this would still be true even if I went with a virgin heal build on the Shaman.

The Ugly:

Face it, you are a goblin! There are only two Goblin classes in WAR, healer and ranged DPS, both of these are prime targets for enemy players. When they see a Goblin, they look for a staff or bow and react accordingly. The only class that gets more focus fired upon then my Shaman is my WE. When you notice your front line starting to collapse, you need to MOVE ASAP.

Decent Skills:

'Ere we Go' = Adds damage to your groups next attack. This is probably the skill that I really need to use more of, instant and useful. If you are in "heal mode" and you have no targets that need healed, this is the first spell you should fire off.(Assuming you are in a full group)

Yer not so bad = Leeches your current target for AP and gives that AP to yourself. Awesome skill here with a short cool down. You should pop this anytime your AP gets close to 50%, and then just mana burn.(I guess in WAR mana burn would actually be "AP burn")

Brain Bursta = this is your staple damage spell, nothing special however, it is mostly used in PvE.

Big Waaagh = This has a short cool down and should be one of your second most used spells anytime you are in "damage mode" in PvP.

Life Leaka = instant and modified by a slotted tactic ability in damage mode. At level 29 the tactic removes 150 Willpower and 150 Intelligence for 15 seconds. Useful against healers and nukers, if they are not attacking you they are attacking your teammates, so it is always useful.

Bunch o' Waaagh = Channeled damage, this is my "thought you could run" spell. I always use this when my target has 20% or less of their health. Usually noob players(Yes, there are a decent amount of noobs or unskilled players in PvP in tier three) always try to run away way too late.

Da Waaagh is coming = this attacks acts like a "chain lighting" attack in Diablo 2. Hits one target then branches out to hit two more and branches one other time to hit yet another two targets. ONLY use this when you are hitting someone that has 4-6 people around them. It is an extremely inefficient spell if you only have one target that is alone.

Eeeek = Knocks back EVERYONE within it's range, and also knocks you in a random direction. Awesome ability, however it will cost you your life if used often in places like Tor Anroc.(It is still usually worth it however) You cannot predict which direction you will be knocked in, however you will know where your enemies are going. If you line up face to face they will be knocked straight back, line up to their left and they will be knocked back far to their right. Think of you as a "gallon of water", when you click the ability the "gallon" hits the surface of the water and a wave goes out, originating in the middle, that "wave" is your knock-back and is exactly how this spell works.

Mork's Buffer = This is an hour long buff that adds to all resists for an hour,(For your whole group) you really need to get in the habit of using this automatically anytime after you die and are brought back to life.

Gather Round = What "seems" to be a lobie group heal. Costs a really expensive 65 AP! I have noticed however then when slotted for healing,(tactics = Plus to WP and plus to % to crit heal) it does a very decent heal, as much as 250% of the heal listed in the tooltip. Using this spell if you are damage spec'ed is a total waste.

Bigger, Better, An' Greener = greatly interruptible direct heal spell. You really will not use this a lot. You should use your shield and your big HOT, before this is even thought about. The ability bar does get knocked back quite a bit if you take any damage while trying to use this ability.

Bleed Fer' Me = instant, 24 second low damage DOT spell, however it does heal your defensive target for the full amount. I only use this if I know the enemy target is going to be alive for awhile.(Such as a tank class) It does help quite a bit if you have already used your shield and big HOT, and you are under attack. Of course if you are not under attack, simply use "Bigger, Better, An' Greener".

Gork'll Fix It = A small direct heal with a little better HOT for 9 seconds. Use this instead of "Bigger, Better, An' Greener", if you are under attack.

'Ey, Quit Bleedin = a 30 AP spell that heals for 1130 over 15 seconds at level 29. This will be your most used spell, whether you are healing or doing damage. If you are tactic slotted for healing, this will do an average of about 1500 over 15 seconds making it heal 100 health every second on average.

Don't Feel Nothing = instant shield that mitigates 500 damage at level 29. Another very commonly used ability.

General Notes:

I really have two "modes" for my Shaman, I must choose one before I enter PvP. I either choose "damage mode" or "healing mode". If in damage mode I slot "Divine Fury"(Adds 25% more damage at the cost of 20% of your healing power) and "Leaky Brainz".(Life Leaka will now also reduce your target's WP and INT by 150 for 15 seconds) If I am in healing mode I slot "Discipline" (Raises WP by 116) and "Extra Special Mushrooms".(Raises your chance to crit heal by 10%)

As I have said before I was a little concerned that by doing a damage build, I would actually greatly gimp my healing abilities, this turned out to be incorrect. A Zealot, spec'ing in healing and being a dedicated healer in a PvP scenario usually averages between 70k and 100k in healing. Being damage spec'ed and entering a PvP scenario slotted for healing and with nothing on my mind but healing, I usually average between 40k and 60k in healing.(Not as good as a Zealot, but certainly not gimped.)

Since I am a "must win at any cost" type of player, sometimes I find myself in a PvP scenario where I must continuously utilize my abilities, such as running up to the Order and Eeeek'ing them, forcing them to take a lava bath.(In Tor Anroc) Since I am not a noob and know how to play my class, I can also use my Shaman as a utility toon such as flag/bauble holder. I try to do what the team needs to win, whether it is healing, damage, or utility.

Please feel free to ask any questions you might have about the Shaman!

Warhammer Online build: Warrior Priest

This build was based on the following guidelines:

Frontline combatant, while still being able to heal. This was actually a difficult build, which is why it took me awhile to complete it. I did not want to give you a build that was raw DPS as this would gimp out your healing abilities. This build gives above average DPS with a hardcore "auto healing" pumped in. Please note that you "must" be using the buffed up skills 90%+ of the time you use any skill.(Another words ALWAYS use a skill in the "Grace" tree, or a core ability in the "Grace tree" unless it is a necessity to use something else like a rez.)

The Warrior Priest:

Prime stats: (In order of importance)

(It is very important that STR takes precedence over Willpower for this build to work as intended. Please note that the more damage you do, the MORE healing you put out)

• Strength = adds to melee damage.
• Willpower = adds to healing power.
• Wounds = adds to HP.

The 25 points will be placed as follows: (There will be a few extra points gained through RvR rewards, however we will not use them here) (Also note that this "caps out" a tree, I really do not like putting "all my eggs in one basket", however I cannot argue that the points could be better placed elsewhere)

15 in "Grace"

Buy ALL the skills in the "Grace" tree. I was going to leave out "Sigmar's Vision" however that is your highest skill for DPS output.(Tied for first place anyway)

The last 3 points will be put in the "Wrath" tree. Any additional points should also be placed in "Wrath".

80 RvR points to be placed in:

• Might level 1 = 1 point
• Might level 2 = 3 points
• Might level 3 = 6 points
• Might level 4 = 10 points
• Might level 5 = 14 points
  


• Resolve level 1 = 1 point
• Resolve level 2 = 3 points
• Resolve level 3 = 6 points
  


• Discipline level 1 = 2 points
• Discipline level 2 = 4 points


• Spiritual Refinement level 1 = 5 points
• Spiritual Refinement level 2 = 10 points
• Spiritual Refinement level 3 = 15 points

The purpose of this build is to be able to be a frontline combatant, with the ability to heal decently.

Here are the planned active morale skills:

• Level 1 = Divine Favor
• Level 2 = Rampaging Siphon
• Level 3 = Penance
• Level 4 = Avatar of Sigmar

and the planned tactic slots: (assuming you are in PvP, PvE tactics would be a little different)

Leading the Prayer
Greave of Sigmar
Restorative Burst
Grace of Sigmar

You can see this build here

Warhammer Build - Bright Wizard Aoe Template

This Warhammer online build was based on the following guidelines:

- Had to be AOE.
- Emphasis was on PvP.
- Personal safety and achievement is meaningless, as long as the team wins.


The Bright Wizard:

Prime stats: (In order of importance)

• Intelligence = adds to magic damage in Warhammer online
• Wounds = adds to HP in Warhammer online
• Willpower = adds to % to disrupt spells in Warhammer online

The 25 points will be placed as follows: (There will be a few extra points gained through RvR rewards, however we will not use them here)

15 in "Conflagration"

Buy the following skills in the Conflagration tree for one point each:

• Annihilate
• Fiery Reserves
• Spreading Flames
• Backdraft
• Conflagration of Doom

Skills in the tree you do not buy: "Explosive Force" and "Wildfire"

The last 5 points will be put in the "Incineration" tree. Any additional points should also be placed in "Incineration", there is no reason in Warhammer online to buy the bottom or second to the bottom skill in the tree.

80 RvR points to be placed in:

• Acumen level 1 = 1 point
• Acumen level 2 = 3 points
• Acumen level 3 = 6 points
• Acumen level 4 = 10 points
• Acumen level 5 = 14 points
  


• Resolve level 1 = 1 point
• Resolve level 2 = 3 points
• Resolve level 3 = 6 points
  


• Sage level 1 = 2 points
• Sage level 2 = 4 points
  


• Focused Power level 1 = 5 points
• Focused Power level 2 = 10 points
• Focused Power level 3 = 15 points

The purpose of this build is to put out massive AOE DPS.

Here are the planned active morale skills:

• Level 1 = Mage Bolt
• Level 2 = Ruin and Destruction
• Level 3 = Scintillating Energy
• Level 4 = Conflagration of Doom

and the planned tactic slots:

• Endless Knowledge
• Fan The Flames
• Fiery Reserves
• Devour Energy

You can see this build here .

Warhammer heavy metal mayhem continues

Some good tasks for the Warhammer Heavy Metal Event at below! Check them out!

As usual, we will change the daily task for the Heavy metal event today. This time however, rather than give you one task for the day we're giving you 7 tasks for the rest of the week! Here is the list of tasks that you need to complete before the end of the event, remember that all previous tasks are active also:

- Kill 10 Factory Chickens in the Reikland Factory Scenario
- Kill 20 Undead
- Detonate the Steam Tank Ammo in the Reikland Factory Scenario
- Complete 5 Quests
- Throw 5 Gaffer’s Gravybombs at enemy players in the Reikland Factory Scenario
- Complete 3 Stages of a Public Quest
- Have your realm eat the Famous Factory Sandwich in the Reikland Factory Scenario

Those of you who are up to date with the daily tasks so far will be able to acquire the exclusive event cloak today for the first time so don't delay, claim your reward early and be one of the first to bear this unique item.

Although you can complete these last tasks in any order, and at any time, please note that if you fill out your event influence bar and earn the chest that will allow you to unlock the new classes, you won't be able to create the new classes until after the event is over.

Warhammer Heavy Metal Event- Day 5 + 6

I'm a day behind... So yesterday task was to "Find the Sand Castle in the Reikland Factory Scenario". Which after getting into the Scenario (which is becoming the only difficult part of the event...) the castle is slightly right of the spawn point (for Order) as the picture shows:-

Walk up to or near the castle and the task completes.

Today’s task... Visit a Capital City... so get to a flight point and fly to a city and task done... now easy tasks are one thing but this is getting stupid...

Tomorrow... Finally a possible challenge... Defeat 15 enemy players in open RvR!

From Curse.COM

Warhammer Heavy Metal Event - Day 4

Warhammer Heavy Metal Event - Day 4
- Posted Nov 23, 2008

So todays task was "Visit the Herald in a Capital City" and once completed if you had done all the previous tasks you had enough influence to claim the first reward. On the order side this was a nice belt trophy.

Next task... Find the Sand Castle in the Reikland Factory Scenario.

Warhammer Heavy Metal Event - Day 3

So today those that had missed some of the daily tasks either through issues with the scenario not popping or due to their own schedule not allowing them to be on every day, received some good news from Mythic and GOA.

James Nichols of Mythic

By popular request, players will now be able to complete previous daily tasks for the Heavy Metal event. A task will continue to unlock each day and remain open until the end of the event allowing players to complete all the tasks at their convenience. Please Note: If you notice an apparent loss of credit for any previous days you have already completed simply exit the game entirely and log back in to correct this issue.

So the first week's tasks will still be released every day as per the schedule in my previous post, however now you have up till the end of the event to complete them.

Now I have mixed feelings about this announcment, yes it is the right thing to do as some issues outside of the control of the players have made it difficult and in some cases impossible to complete the daily tasks. However I do feel it has now watered down the achievement of completing the event even more.

I guess my issue is not with this amendment but with the overall difficulty of the tasks and the type of tasks. There seems little imagination gone into the event, so far all tasks have taken less than about 20mins to complete (minus queue times). All tasks have been very simple just asking you to do things you would normally do in game anyway. The only place they have shown some imagination, is the new scenario. Yet again the tasks that involve the scenario seem very simple.

I think the problem or the reason why they have made the event like this is due to the fact that they want the event to be open to all levels and all players. This makes it very difficult to create tasks that are going to be challenging but still able to be completed by all types who play the game (read casual up to hardcore).

I do feel mythic need to maybe raise the bar a little. I by no means want tasks and events that are only for the hardcore however I would like some tasks that actually challenge me and that leave me with a feeling of accomplishment at the end.

Anyway back to the task in hand... Day 3 task was to "Complete the Scouting Quest that begins in Reikland Factory Scenario". This time it took me a lot longer to get into the scenario but when I did what I found was funny... The quest was to scout each objective point in the scenario. So everyone grabbed the quest and proceeded to ignore the destruction players and instead run to all four points so they could complete the quest... now I will admit I did the same thing.

However once you completed the quest you were able to take it again... so once again every one ran to all the points ignoring the enemy... handing the quest in a second time gave you a small xp bonus... however again it was repeatable... so in the Scenarios I played order decided just to do this quest over and over again and the destruction actually played the scenario. This resulted in 2 very one sided games. After this I stopped playing the scenario...

This quest really should have been a onetime quest... any way as long as you could get into the Scenario it was another easy one to tick off.

Warhammer Heavy Metal Event - Day 2

So today’s task was to complete in no time again. All you need to do is complete 3 stages of a public quest. Now I did a little bit of testing and this could be 3 stages of 1 public quest or 1 stage of 3 public quests or any combination. So basically if you found yourself alone and unable to get a party you could just complete the first stage of a public quest 3 times.

Just a quick update today. I will post a longer update tomorrow with some feedback from the American public test server participants who have had the chance to try out the Knight of the Blazing Sun! Sometimes it sucks to be a European...

CURSE.COM

Warhammer Heavy Metal Event - Day 1

So this morning the European Servers got the Warhammer 1.05 patch and with it the Warhammer Heavy Metal event! How cool is the live event tab? When you click the tab you get a little heavy metal music chime! That aside if you read my post yesterday you will not of been surprised that the first task was to play the new Reikland Factory scenario.

It took me on a medium population server about 5mins for the first scenario to pop, after that it seemed to take about a minute after coming out of one before another one started. So for me it took about 20mins to do the first task. I have seen reports that some servers and some tiers where having issues with the scenario starting but I haven't personally witnessed this.

So with the first task very easy to complete, I took a few screen shots of the new scenario and then got down to fighting the forces of destruction!

Overall I enjoyed the scenario, it was nice to have new content added so soon after launch and as I've rolled a lot of alt's it was nice to be able to play something other than Nordenwatch in tier 1.

If you haven't played it yet the Reikland Factory scenario features 4 capture points. 1 in the centre which is worth the most points over time. Then 3 other points in a triangle around the centre point, that a worth slightly less points over time. You can see what I mean below:-


You can then see from the map that both groups start at the bottom of the map on either side.

I've yet to see any side totally dominating due to their use of tactics on this map. Normally it’s the side with the highest levels wins unless they have a poor class balance or very poor skills.

Overall I've been very impressed with the scenario there are lots of routes between points, lots of hiding holes and places to explorer. It seems to me at least to be a very well designed and polished scenario. I'm looking forward to playing it over the next 2 weeks!

A Warhammer Guide to World Domination

Mythic Entertainment recently published a new guide on the Warhammer Herald: a guide to world domination.

In the warhammer guide, the author gives tips for sacking a city, and Mythic points out that this guide is not meant to be realm-specific; while it outlines attacking Altdorf, the strategies can be taken into consideration when laying siege to the Inevitable City as well.

The culmination of the ever-present conflict in Warhammer Online is the capture and ransacking of the enemy’s capital city. Herein we’ll detail the steps necessary for opening the gates of the city, and ultimately taking it for your realm. Later on, we’ll have more specific guides for each step along the way, but every razing and pillaging group of warriors must start somewhere, so let’s begin with the basics.Opening up the gates of either city is a long and arduous process that begins in the Tier 4 zones primarily. In order to force your enemy’s city into the contested state, you and the fellow warriors of your realm must first capture 2 fortresses in the Tier 4 zones within 12 hours of each other.In order to attack these fortresses, you must first capture the zones prior to the Fortress zones in Tier 4 by Zone Control (participating in Scenarios, queuing for Scenarios, capturing Objectives and Keeps, Killing enemy players and completing PQs). What this means is you’ll first push to a zone between your Tier 4 home and the enemy’s (Praag for example), and once you’ve taken control of that zone you would push forward to Reikland or Chaos Wastes (depending on your allegiance) and capture the objectives there.

To read more, head over to A Guide to Total World Domination: or, How to Sack a City in Warhammer Online.