NT Deadlands Quests

[Dhalin]

Just what level are they meant to be attempted?

I got these quests dealing with the NT Deadlands at about Lv11 Cleric. I also have Lv11 Warrior, and I'm wearing a full suit of plate armor and a Fine Large Shield, and I'm using (as far as I can tell) the best weapon a cleric that level can use.

There are just too stinking many mobs (way way way too many clerics!) to even think about getting some of these quests done... I just gotta ask...

Just what level are you supposed to do these quests, seeing that these mobs are on NT, the Training Island? I thought the training island was supposed to take you up to about Lv10, but there's no way any Lv10 is going to do this quest-line feasibly. From the looks of things, it would likely take 16+, maybe even 18+, to have a hope of surviving in there, and that's if you multi a healer school too.

Are the rewards actually worth it for that high of a character? If not, I wonder if the devs should consider toning down the sheer numbers of the clerics that spawn there, as you literally can't hurt anything. As soon as you do, there's 2, 3+ clerics there spamming heals on anything you attack... there's just no stinkin' way you're gonna do it.

What exactly IS the reward of that quest line anyways? I was only getting like 250-500xp for a couple of the quests in that series, and the quests were _hard_, much harder than anything else on the island...

I know the NT and T1 revamps have already been done recently, but... this seems a bit out of place, did you guys forget this questline/area in the revamp?

[AmonGwareth]

Well, he DOES recommend you have friends to complete it.

Guard Barak the Bold says to you:
"I should warn you that the next part of our invasion will be difficult. You may wish to ask other Gifted to join you. "

[Kerech]

If I remember right, I could solo them at about level 14 as a monk... this was on Blight and nobody was around to group with

[StalePopcorn]

Yeah, about level 16 Storm Disciple for me I think from memory...

[Dhalin]

The whole problem with trying to get friends, is that quite often I'm like the only person on NT island during the times I play and there's simply nobody to group with.

Blah.

I'll likely come back just for payback, but it kinda sucks that whatever the quest could reward will be useless to me by then.

Maybe when/if the game's population increases to healthy levels, when/if you have a number of similarly-leveled people running around lower levels, that would be a better time to introduce "Group" questing at earlier levels of play.

End-game grouping is fine; there's lots of max-level players... but trying to find similarly-leveled players in lower tiers might not be so easy.

Heck, WoW is a *huge* game with 12-million subscribers and even they recognize the follies of early-to-mid level group quests, that they removed the Elite tags off of many mobs early-to-mid level to allow them to be solo'd easier.

Jus' sayin...

[Sigi]

You can take the mobs there solo at a level that the reward is still a reward.
Pull one by one and run if you notice the one you pulled brought some friends along.

[Dhalin]

Well, I'm on the stage that wants the Defenders... to get to the Defenders you have to sneak around the Patrollers (easy) and the Raiders (harder).

I pulled ONE defender, waaaaay back up onto the hill.... and I was *far* out of aggro range of anything else. I was fighting him for about half of his life, and then suddenly, he goes from like 40% to 100% and 2 cleric Defenders, 2 Warrior Defenders, and 1 cleric patroller suddenly run up the hill, far out of their aggro range, for no apparent reason.

And I need TEN of these stupid things!? UGH.

Also, I'd like to add that there's not anywhere to run *to*.

Once you start needing the stuff at (and presumably beyond) the gate, you're not gonna have any place you can run *to*.

I'm wondering just how freaking large of a group of Lv12-14ish people you'd need to do this without getting killed... I don't think 3-4 would be enough; those mobs travel in packs of 5+ from what I could see. And with that many clerics, it'd be a challenge to do enough damage to actually kill the stupid things through their many heals... while mages are constantly stunning and rooting you, no less. And then you got the <30 second or less Respawn timers on all of these mobs, if they act like the ghosts do over at Attor's place.. and I just don't really see how you'd realistically do this without some high-level blasting everything to death.

Now, maybe this sort of combat/play is good at Endgame levels when you have actual tools to deal with this kinda stuff, and more people are more similarly-leveled, but to stick this kind of stuff on a _training_ island... I dunno, it seems out of place to me. This kind of combat doesn't belong in a _newbie_ area IMO.

[StalePopcorn]

From memory, I think that particular quest is the "pinnacle" of NT. Once you can complete that, it is definitely time to move on. It is a very tough challenge, no argument there. But oh, the sweet joy when you finish that quest!

Persevere, it is worth it, even from a "HA! DIE SUCKER!" point of view!

[Sigi]

Sorry, case of mistaken quests.

But, it is a good quest. I don't see anything wrong in something being hard to do. If it's simple you get the complain that there's no chalange.
And, more important, it's not a requirement to go on. It's no game stopper. You can travel beyond New Trismus do other things first and check back (or not) to see if you can finish the quest.

[Dhalin]

You can travel beyond New Trismus do other things first and check back (or not) to see if you can finish the quest.

My main thing, though, is... yes I can do that, but the quest reward will probably not be worth the time spent on it.

What good would 500-1k xp and maybe some Lv10-15ish item do me at, say, 20-25+?

*shrugs*

I was just voicing my opinion that this kinda stuff doesn't really belong on a newbie island IMO. It is good to have some challenge, but Good God, there are more colors than Black and White. There are millions of shades of Grey. So, White is too easy... but that doesn't mean you have to go 100% Black either. How about, say, 50% Grey?

Maybe make it so you can actually Clear the mobs, so they don't respawn in 30 seconds, so that you don't get an endless quagmire that you can't progress past, once you kill 2 mobs, another comes rushing in from where you Just killed them? By the time the 2nd is dead, a 3rd is repopping and it just goes on and on and on until you eventually expire...

Maybe lessen the number of Clerics and/or tone their heals back a little?

Like I said, a little challenge is good, but "OMG! This is ridiculous!" isn't.

[Sigi]

I think you get (among other things) an emblem that's not really a lvl depended reward.

[Dracaena]

Have you asked in new player or market channels if others would join you for the quest? It is a group quest and as such to solo it you have to be overleveled. It isn't a deal breaker if you decide not to.

But the last player who asked me for help with that quest line ended up with a group of about six, as I checked in the channels I was in and everyone jumped and said yeah I or my alt needs to to do that. Before that I have taken an alt and helped other players with it as well, but you need to let it be known in game that you are looking for help.


Dracaena

[Ataq]

The key to these quests is to find a quiet spot that you can pull mobs to. For Defenders you can run up the hill behind the NPC camp and then follow the ridgeline over to the Defenders. Use your pulling spell (I used a range teched fire bolt, for example) on the nearest Defender and then back up a ways so you can fight out of range of any adds. The hill is free of mobs and you can back up a long way if needed (for mages or scouts, for example). Once the mob is far enough away from the camp you can run back to it and start beating on it.

I like crafting so I had a range teched spell quite early on. If you don't like crafting you'll have to ask to have one made. It really does make a difference. Trying to pull with Dispirit Foe generally got me more mobs than I could handle.

*edit* The next part is definitely a group quest, but everything up to the named mob is easily soloable if you find the right spot to pull to.

[Zanukk Sytheclaw]

The key to these quests is to find a quiet spot that you can pull mobs to. For Defenders you can run up the hill behind the NPC camp and then follow the ridgeline over to the Defenders. Use your pulling spell (I used a range teched fire bolt, for example) on the nearest Defender and then back up a ways so you can fight out of range of any adds. The hill is free of mobs and you can back up a long way if needed (for mages or scouts, for example). Once the mob is far enough away from the camp you can run back to it and start beating on it.

I like crafting so I had a range teched spell quite early on. If you don't like crafting you'll have to ask to have one made. It really does make a difference. Trying to pull with Dispirit Foe generally got me more mobs than I could handle.

*edit* The next part is definitely a group quest, but everything up to the named mob is easily soloable if you find the right spot to pull to.

Aye it is a group quest. it can be duoable. Did it duo with a lvl 13 hatchling with my lvl 8 hatchling (but lvl 40 craft which gives me access to better armor)

As for the rewards, Unlike dragons, you have many different schools you can change to, since you started , well those will be lvl 1. Most armors , equips and stuff can be used by different classes and crafts so one way or another you will be able to use.

Bipeds are all about multi classing. At first they may seem very weak but as you lvl up more classes and unlock more skills they are unrivaled in pve, However it does take time.

Many others may advise you to lvl up a craft. example if you lvl up outfitter to 90 or 100 you can use high end gear even if you are lvl 11.

[Vahrokh]

Heck, WoW is a *huge* game with 12-million subscribers and even they recognize the follies of early-to-mid level group quests, that they removed the Elite tags off of many mobs early-to-mid level to allow them to be solo'd easier

I quit WoW after 5 years because they made it so banal that you have to be completely lobotomized to ever die. Points of view.

Also, I did those mobs on my biped, iirc was a reaver / spiritist or something like that. I remember I did something like interrupt them or drain them but it's so many years ago I forgot almost all :S