The Glade 4.0

"...and the rise of the sons of Aryas, there was an age undreamed of."

I've been playing Age of Conan for the past several weeks and I have to say that I am really enjoying it (wife an I decided to pay for one MMO at a time). It has a very engaging story. It's dark and gritty, yet the world is beautiful (especially with DirectX 10).

The combat system is more engaging and fun than any other MMO (likely doubly so for anyone who wants to be a hardcore tank). There is no auto-swing. And enemies are actively defending different areas so you have to change up your attacks and combos based on their defense. And, if you choose to do it, you can also actively change your defenses as well for even better damage mitigation.

Every piece of armor looks like it was designed more for function instead of flare. The highest level gear is ornate, but it's not "In your face, check me out, how cool is this shizzle?!" flashy. This might be a turn off for some, but for me it's a plus as it feels like a more realistic world.

The entire world feels like a Conan/Howard/Frazetta world. Gore, boobs (yep, nipples and all... though they are not prevalent), muscular barbarians, etc. There are even over-the-top fatality moves that also never get old but give you more experience when they happen as well as give you a nice buff to your attacks for a few seconds.

If anyone is interested, during November they are having a double XP month. Anyone who types /claim in the game will get a potion that lasts 24 hours (game time) and gives them twice as much experience. I've confirmed that you can get as many potions as you like with /claim. On top of this, the software itself is really cheap. My wife got her copy off of amazon for 5 bucks and I know Direct2Drive charges the same price. The demo is free to play for 7 days and a purchased copy has the first month free.

Look me up on the Wiccana server (my barb's name is Jomero) if you decide to give it a whirl.

"So, did Conan return the wayward daughter of King Osric to her home. And having no further concern, he and his companions sought adventure in the West. Many wars and feuds did Conan fight. Honor and fear were heaped upon his name and, in time, he became a king by his own hand... And this story shall also be told."

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Les Zombis et les Loups-Garous!