Vanguard Saga Of Heroes - Player made screenshots released

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Sir Ralph


If you measure "success" in million subscribers, it will be incredibly unsuccessful. According to Brad McQuaid it's aiming for 200-300 thousand subscribers, which I'm inclined to predict it will get.

Now I've seen a lot more of the detail I'd second that.

[Harovan]

Originally posted by DrSpike
It could be that, but my impressions came from reading your posts.

Your impressions how it should be, or your impressions how it is? Because I meant the latter, while you judging by your reply probably mean the former. I still don't see it as WoW clone (I think it will attract a lot less riffraff), even though it's been simplified a certain amount. I'm not enthusiastic about it anymore (I think you can feel that), but I still think it'll be a game worth playing. I.e. not "the savior", but a good MMOG nonetheless.

[DrSpike]

Well my question really was given how enthusiastic you were about the game, what is driving this recent statement that you might not ever play it.

The 2 options are the game has changed to something you don't want to play, or you have changed and no longer want the things you once did. Or some combination.

My first impressions of what the game was or thoughts about what it should be seems rather beside the point.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Sir Ralph
Why, I like Guild Wars. For zero monthly fee it's a wonderful game, with nice tactical choices too. I just don't like 90% of the Guild Wars players.

Oh, by the way, you know I've been trying to get you to play Nightfall? Well not sure if you have been following it but with the new concept of 3 heroes you can set the skills/equipment for you can 'solo' pretty much anything now, so the playerbase shouldn't be a concern.

[Harovan]

I will play it as soon as I overcome my current MMOG aversion. Which may be soon as well as never. EDIT: Oh ... "it" = VG, sorry for the confusion

What are heroes? "Programmable" henchman NPCs? Sounds interesting.

[DrSpike]

Basically yes. You still have to use 4 regular sucky henchies, but you + 3 skillbars you can set gives you a lot of freedom.

[Harovan]

I don't quite understand. Do you go to PvE adventures with 4 "sucky henchies" AND 3 heroes (making it 8 together with you)?

[DrSpike]

Yup.

Though if you are smart you can pick the henchies with skillbars that make them suck relatively less.

[conmcb25]

Originally posted by DrSpike


Oh, by the way, you know I've been trying to get you to play Nightfall? Well not sure if you have been following it but with the new concept of 3 heroes you can set the skills/equipment for you can 'solo' pretty much anything now, so the playerbase shouldn't be a concern.

//agreed//

Im rapidly training up my heroes on all my level 20's so I can go back and Hero/Hench the crap I missed in the other chapters because I got sick and tired of trying to pug stuff.

Interupt heroes FTW btw

[Asher]

Originally posted by Sir Ralph
Back in trolling mood, Asher? A few posts above you were still bragging that you were accepted into the beta.

That was a long time ago, before I got to play it.

[kolpo]

I have been in the vanguard beta for a few months. Some ideas about vanguard are simply wrong:

• It is not a group oriented game, I'm pretty sure that more people are soloing then grouping. Finding a group is actually hard and can take a long time(even high level people say that)
• The death penality is not insanely hard. You won't like dieing, but it is not EQ1 hard, more EQ2 style. Annoying but not the end of the universe. If you can't get your corpse back(and 80% of the exp) is it hard but still nowhere as hard as EQ. You can summon your corpse at an altar you, can't ever lose it.
• leveling is faster then EQ1, but much slower then WoW. I think it is similar to the original EQ2 level speed.
• The archtype system didn't made the classes too similar like in EQ2. Classes are very varied and diverse, this is on of the strong points of the game. Rangers, bards, necro's, sorcerers and bloodmages are especially fun and all good solo classes I didn't liked druids because they had much downtime and clerics where rather bland in soloing.
• This is the first MMOPRG where I actually enjoyed crafting for some time! It is much much better then the EQ2 system and actually involves a little tactics and thinking(thought not a lot). I still didn't it fun enough to let it be my main profession, but I'm not a crafty type.
• The graphics of the landscape are beauthifull and have a great athmosphere, especially the elven lands truelly rock! Goblins and orcs have very intresting newbie quest who let you feel like true orcs and goblins Thought they are locked on an island
• I have never been truelly kill stealed. Yes people sometimes did it by accident, but never on purpose. No need to fear about this.
• combat chains don't play an important role in combat. You only get them when you crit and when you crit shall you often win anyway. Combat is very repetive and doesn't involve a lot of thinking or skill, thought I never played an mmoprg where it did.

Thought some ideas about vanguard are true

• you need a very good computer to run this game
• group content is hard
• equipment matters, I easily notice this when I twinked a lower level char. The new expertise system limits twinking somewhat, but I can still increase the dps of a melee char by more then 50%, by giving him good gear.

I won't buy or play vanguard after launch, thought I'm not sure whatever this is because of vanguard or just because I have become sick of MMOPRG's. I think it is the later.

[Harovan]

Finding a group may be hard on the beta server, but I don't think it'll be hard on release. There have been times with much less than 100 people online, now there it was hard to find a group. But still possible. What you say about gear is true, but for the real good gear you just have to group. Soloing you find only the basic stuff. Sure you can play through the game with that, but hey, it's a game about dressing your baby (just like little girls do ).

I found crafting incredibly sucky (just as diplomacy), but I didn't try both for a few months, so things may have changed. I heard about a revamp of both, just couldn't be bothered to try again.

Have you tried housing? I couldn't get a spot for it, otherwide I would have tried.

Edit: Oh, and you're right about the death penalty. It's been toned down from being quite harsh in the forst half of the year to a mild annoyance now. These altars make it really really cheap. And the XP loss is not worth to mention either. If anything, that's what makes me really pissed.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Didn't have much to add, just wanted to know that I enjoyed reading this thread through right now . It's like the rise and fall of the hopes and dreams of a game .

I'll go back to casually playing my WoW and let Ralph curse at Vanguard not being as hardcore as he thought .

[kolpo]

Originally posted by Sir Ralph
Soloing you find only the basic stuff. Sure you can play through the game with that, but hey, it's a game about dressing your baby (just like little girls do ).

You can also gain equipment the wow way: solo to max level as fast as possible and AFTER that do group and raid content to get better stuff.

It seems most people in vanguard beta are folowing this strategy, even when 800-1000 people where locked on the desert continent saw I people yell for groups for more then 2 hours. Not all where group unfriendly classes. Even in WoW did I got groups faster then that, especially when you where doing popular instances.

In early EQ2 was it extremely easy to get a group, my shaman had often a group invite in less then 30 mins and otherwise could I quickly make my own. The later EQ2 revamps(who increased soloing) changed this. When I compare vanguard group exp and solo exp, am I not even sure that groups give more, this while in early EQ2 groups gave a LOT more exp then solo.

I actually would like a game where neither exp nor loot are split in groups(everyone get's 100% exp and his own loot from every kill), thought I fear this is way too radical for the mainstream gamer

[Asher]

Why don't you guys go back to EQ if you liked the "hardcore experience"? There's no money in that.

Games are supposed to be enjoyable, and you guys take it too seriously.