Travels Across Telon
The tale of Vanguard would be a worthy quest line in Telon as it has a long and interesting history and has seen more drama than an average British Soap Opera. This week has been one of both good and bad concerning Vanguard. Sony revealed plans to relocate the Vanguard team to their more central offices and that the game will be overseen by a new director of development: Thom Terrazas. We first encountered Thom four months back when he introduced himself as project manager for Vanguard. These plans however aren't all bad as the Vanguard team will now have access to resources that were unavailable in the past, for example they'll be in close proximity to the EQ2 team.
Along with the move, the Vanguard team have unfortunately lost a number of staff. Three known losses were David "Hasium" Gilbertson, former Director of Development for Vanguard who has been with the project for 5 years. Steve "Aruspex" Williams, former Diplomacy Lead and Brad "Linear_core" Lyke, game developer. The Vanguard community owe a big thankyou to those who were not retained for the work they have put into the game.
Perhaps I should have started with the good news first? Hidden amongst this news was the release of Game Update 3 - Phase 1. A handful of these changes was many new quests in the Ksaravi Gulch area in Qalia, hundreds of bug fixes and an EQ2 spam filter. The main item of interest is the substantial performance increases and CTD fixes.
Still to come in the next few weeks will be the other two phases of Game Update 3. The second phase will include a revamped Khal and overland raid targets. The third and most anticipated phase will introduce the long awaited Ancient Port Warehouse raid zone.
Player statistics indicate that the largest population of Telon citizens are in their mid 30ies. When people suggest that SOE should introduce more mid level content I am amazed. There is so much rich content for mid levels that you cannot possibly experience it all before you out level the zone.
Three premier dungeons for those in their thirties that they must see are the Pantheon of the Ancients, Dargun's Tomb and the Temple of Vol Tuniel.
Pantheon of the Ancients
The Pantheon of the Ancients is the resting place of the Gods and where an avatar of each god resides. The Pantheon is ruled by two sisters: Mara and Caia. The trials of the Pantheon take place in numerous sections containing two floors and two areas, one of good and one of evil. To prove your strength and courage to each God, you must complete a timed trial within the Pantheon. The good side offers 6 trials of a heroic nature, from rescuing NPCs from danger to protecting innocents from an onslaught, while the evil side offers those of dirty deeds and trickery.
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Once you have a mark of blessing from each Avatar, you have proven yourself to be worthy to face the Sisters. For completing the 6 trials on each side, the ancient keeper of each section will give you one half of a cloak that holds great powers. Once you have both parts you can combine them to forge a cloak that will help you in the Sister event. The sisters reside in the Immortal Sanctum, this place is at the very end of the Pantheon. |
The Sister event is an exciting and challenging encounter. Both are level 33 and are 6 dots. The Cloak of the Pantheon is no ordinary cloak, however. There is one passive effect and 3 activated effects with the cloak that will help you with the encounter. The passive effect protects you from a damaging aura that surrounds the sisters. Without this protection a normal group would have a harder time defeating them.
| The first effect is a group buff that varies with different Cloaks. The heavy fighter cloak would grant the group with higher mitigation, while a defensive caster would increase healing. The second effect grants life to Siphoned Spirits who will aid you against the Sisters. The third effect is a descurse. The sisters will periodically debuff a group member with the "Sigil of Doom". If the cloak is used within 5 seconds of being debuffed then you will be cured. The fight is very challenging but the reward at the end may (or may not) be worth it. Once the sisters are defeated, you are given the option to trade the cloak back for a random reward. |
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There is a higher chance of you receiving a Legendary (red) named weapon, however it is not a 100% chance. If you're unlucky you can repeat all twelve trials for another cloak which can be traded in again.
Pantheon of the Ancients is located at the Strand of the Ancients, in Eastern Qalia and is aimed at adventurers in their low thirties. The entrance is hidden behind a large stone door. Speaking the password will grant you entry. The password can be obtained through a quest line in the same chunk. Once you enter the Throne room you are blocked once again. There is a secret stairwell underneath the throne that leads down into the Pantheon. To move the throne you must find a stone switch protruding from one of the columns. Once you find the right one, the thrown will move aside granting you access.
This is one dungeon that cannot be described fully in a meagre half page and I have plans to write a complete article on the Pantheon of the Ancients.
Dargun's Tomb
With Halloween just around the corner I decided to check out some of the more spooky parts of Telon and Dargun's Tomb seemed appropriate. Dargun's Tomb was once the home to the Dwarfs of Bordinar's Cleft. Having not fully progressed through the quest line, I can only guess that the tomb went under siege from an army of Gnolls who sought Dargun's treasures. Who Dargun is is still a mystery that I hope to learn as I progress through the Tomb.
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Dargun's Tomb is located within the Northern Borders of eastern Thestra. The harsh climate is a polar opposite of the lush forests of Tursh and it's surrounding areas. Giant frost drakes roam the skies and the flurries of snow cannot extinguish the burning beacons of the mysterious constructs near the frozen lake. Dargun's Tomb is a premier dungeon for adventures who are level 32 - 40. The dungeon is populated with gnolls, ogres and ghost dwarves. |
| Once inside, a group of dwarves who have been forced into a small room are pleased at your arrival. The dwarves send you to all parts of the dungeon, from the sunken tombs to the rune engraved halls. Further in you will arrive at the cell block. Inside one of the cells is an old spirit named Blodor who offers riches of the Tomb if you are willing to help him. I did manage to complete this quest, and it has an interesting twist at the end that caught us off guard. From what I've seen, this dungeon seems huge and I look forward to fully exploring the rest. |
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The Ruins of Vol Tuniel
Possibly the most popular dungeon of it's level is the Ruins of Vol Tuniel. The main factor is that the quest line is complete and offers the best armour and weapons for it's level range.
Vol Tuniel is the female goddess of the Moon and the matron deity of the elves. From the information about the gods, we know that: "Vol Tuniel is the sister of Vol Anari, the sun god. Vol Tuniel was responsible for the division of the high and wood elves from the master dark elven race. For this transgression upon his children, Haelufir cursed the high and wood elves with the same pale skin as their goddess to mark them as traitors to the true blooded dark elves. When Moraj rallied the gods to fight Haelufir, it was Vol Tuniel who first joined him with bow in hand. During the god war, Vol Tuniel was all but destroyed when Kheolim was destroyed. For almost a thousand years she has dwindled between life and death, a dying goddess for a dying race."
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The main quest hub for this place is the Wardship of the Sleeping moon, a town located north of the ruined temple. Once you have earned the respect from the Elves, you are able to take the quests to assemble the armour. |
The quest line will take you through the deepest parts of three dungeons. I spent 2 hours crawling through The Ruins of Vol Tuniel and like most other dungeons it is huge. My collective experience of this place is only 2 and a half hours, so my knowledge is limited. Once I experience more of it I will be sure to review this place in more depth.
The three points of interest mentioned above are only a few of the dungeons available for this level range. Two other dungeons I have visted over the past few weeks is Red Sparrow Depths near New Targonor and the Blood Seeker Den, east from The Deebs.