EverQuest: Rain of Fear Launches!

EverQuest: Rain of Fear, EQ's 19th expansion, is all set to launch!

As of this posting, servers are expected to be down until around 10:00 A.M. Pacific Time (1:00 P.M. Eastern Time). (We all know that could be +/- a few hours, of course.)

In the meantime, you may want to check out some tips for getting started in Rain of Fear (with links to our posted guides) and read over the game update notes posted below here (these are taken from the patcher):

*** EverQuest: Rain of Fear ***

- The power of Fear, captured from its home plane by the Alarans and now freed from the grasp of the Triumvirate, is falling back to Norrath's surface in crystallized form.  The largest fragment of this power crashed on Alaris, very near to Erillion, the City of Bronze, but other powerful shards are falling elsewhere across the continents.  A new pathway is open outside of Erillion that leads to Shard's Landing, where followers of Cazic-Thule vie with other power-seekers in an attempt to restore their god.  Norrath's heroes are called into this conflict to prevent the rise of an even greater danger than the Triumvirate.

*** Highlights ***

- EverQuest's 19th expansion, Rain of Fear, has launched!  You can reach Shard's Landing by traveling through Erillion, the City of Bronze, or seek out new lands that other crystal impacts have revealed around the globe!
- Rain of Fear raises the level cap to 100.
- Added Slayer and Collection Achievements.  Slayer achievements will update when you kill the listed NPC.  Collection achievements will update when you right click the item.
- Added the Aggro Meter to display your current aggro rating in comparison to the most hated on an NPC.

*** Slayer / Collect Achievements ***

- When killing an NPC that is part of a Slayer achievement, you'll automatically get updated and your current kill counts can be viewed in the achievement window.
- A collectible item will have the "Collectible" tag in the item display window.
- To collect an item, right click on the item. When collecting an item you'll receive a notification message.
- Added "Collectible" as a filter option for "Select by Type" in the bazaar window and also alphabetized the type list.

*** Aggro Meter ***

- The new Aggro Meter displays your current percentage of hate compared to the entity that is most hated by the NPC that is the focus of the meter.  By default, this shows your current target, but the current aggro target can also be locked so that it won't change when you change your current target.
- The meter can be toggled open and closed using the EQ button, /aggrometer, or by assigning a key binding to it.
- Aggro meter displays can be toggled in the Player, Group, Target, and Extended Target Window using the right click menu for each window.
- Added the ability to set the low, warning, and most hated colors for the aggro ratings.  By default they are green, yellow, and red for low, warning, and most hated.
- Added the slash command /aggrolock that functions just like "Set Aggro Target" on the Aggro Meter.

*** Autonomous Brokering ***

- You will now be able to purchase items from a bazaar trader directly from the Bazaar Search Window if you own Rain of Fear.
- You will now be able to barter using the Barter Search Window if you own Rain of Fear.
- You will now be able to open The Bazaar Search and Barter Search windows using key bindings, EQ button commands, and the slash commands from any zone.
- You can now enter Offline Mode when in buyer or trader mode using the slash command or the "Offline Mode" button in the UI.  This will allow you to remain in this mode while EverQuest is not running.
- Offline transactions for each purchase / sale will output when you return from offline mode.
- Added in a confirmation for going into Offline Mode.  You can turn off this confirmation in the Options window.
- Added in key bindings, EQ button commands, and removed UI restrictions on opening the Bazaar / Trader Search window.
- Each trader item will now appear as the stack size that is for sale.  Previously the search results would return the total count of all of that item for sale in one line in the window.
- Implemented a max results per trader filter in the Bazaar Search window.
- Made some changes to the Bazaar Search window to make it look more like the Merchant window.
 - - Added a "Preview" button.
 - - Shortened "Inspect Item" to "Inspect" and put it at the top of the window.
 - - Quantity is now its own column.
 - - Added icons to the display (and made them follow the preview / inspect rules for right / left click).
 - - The cost display now uses coin columns.
 - - Made the "Find Trader" button only work when the highlighted item is being sold from a trader in the zone you are currently in.
 - - Alt-left clicking the item line will now bring up the item inspect window for that line.
- Made some changes to the Barter Search window to make it look more like the Merchant window.
 - - Added a "Preview" button.
 - - Changed "View Item" to "Inspect" and put it at the top for compensation items.
 - - Added an "Inspect" button for buy lines.
 - - Quantity is now its own column.
 - - Made the "Find Buyer" button only work when the highlighted item is being bought from a buyer in the zone you are currently in.
 - - Made the icons follow the preview / inspect rules for right / left click.

*** Items ***

- Additional Hero's Forge robes have arrived! They are now available for the Ebon, Viridian, Violet, Beryl, and Auburn armor sets.
- Removed erroneous text from some augments which stated a solvent was required to remove them.

*** Tradeskills ***

- Hero's Forge violet cloth robes are now able to be crafted.
- Recipes that require a container as a component will now allow for auto-combine when the required container is in any container.

*** Quests & Events ***

- Increased the drop rate of the fear shards collected by Magus Burlshin.
- The Chaotic Vortex used in the Agnarr event in the Bastion of Thunder should once again teleport you when you right click it.
- Frostfell events will run from December 7th, 2012 to January 8th, 2013.

*** Spells ***

- Created hundreds of upgraded spells from level 96 to 100.  Rank I spells can be found on merchants in Shard's Landing, while higher ranks can be obtained from Tomekeeper Kirkaz, who is also in Shard's Landing.
- Beastlord - Corrected the spell description for Focus of Klar.
- Beastlord - Corrected the spell description for Spirit of Bale.
- Necromancer - Changed all "Scent of X" debuffs to match the icons and particle effects of Scent of Terris.
- Ranger - Corrected the spell icons for the "Swarm of X" DoT and Damage Shield spells.
- Wizard - Updated the fiery sword created by Burnmaster's Pyroblade.

*** AA ***

- Hundreds of Alternate Advancement upgrades are now available for levels 96 to 100.
- Warrior "Gut Punch" has had the accuracy debuff reduced in power for all ranks.
- Finishing Blow no longer requires the NPC to be visibly fleeing to activate.

*** Achievements ***

- Added Slayer and Collection Achievements.  Slayer achievements will update when you kill the listed NPC.  Collection achievements will update when you right click the item.

*** Progression Servers ***

- Fixed a problem that could cause an expansion to open without a vote.

*** Miscellaneous ***

- Fixed an issue where if you tried to go into full screen mode on a resolution that your monitor didn't support, it would previously crash the game.
- /log will now persist across logins.
- Added new tribute upgrades for level 96 to 100.  Some tribute types had new lines added to extend them past 10 ranks.

*** UI ***

- Added artwork for the Slayer and Collection buttons.
- Created new label EQTypes for the primary aggro rating, secondary aggro name, and secondary aggro rating.  They are:
   AGGRO_TARGET_NAME    302
   AGGRO_MOST_HATED_NAME    303
   AGGRO_MOST_HATED_NAME_NO_LOCK    304
   AGGRO_MY_HATE_PCT    305
   AGGRO_MY_HATE_PCT_NO_LOCK    306
   AGGRO_MOST_HATED_HATE_PCT    307
   AGGRO_MOST_HATED_HATE_PCT_NO_LOCK    308
   AGGRO_GROUP1_HATE_PCT    309
   AGGRO_GROUP2_HATE_PCT    310
   AGGRO_GROUP3_HATE_PCT    311
   AGGRO_GROUP4_HATE_PCT    312
   AGGRO_GROUP5_HATE_PCT    313
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET1_HATE_PCT    314
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET2_HATE_PCT    315
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET3_HATE_PCT    316
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET4_HATE_PCT    317
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET5_HATE_PCT    318
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET6_HATE_PCT    319
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET7_HATE_PCT    320
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET8_HATE_PCT    321
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET9_HATE_PCT    322
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET10_HATE_PCT    323
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET11_HATE_PCT    324
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET12_HATE_PCT    325
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET13_HATE_PCT    326
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET14_HATE_PCT    327
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET15_HATE_PCT    328
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET16_HATE_PCT    329
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET17_HATE_PCT    330
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET18_HATE_PCT    331
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET19_HATE_PCT    332
   AGGRO_EXT_TARGET20_HATE_PCT    333
- Created a new gauge EQType(149) for the aggro gauge.
- Fixed an issue where automatic vertical scroll bars were sometimes overlapping text.
- Changed the Note window to automatically scroll if the text is too long.
- Changed the buttons in the Achievements window from plain blue to stylized versions.
- Fixed a bug with Merchant windows where the quantity window for purchase would always default to max stack even if the merchant didn't have that many available.
- Added a way to reset the your current UI to the default UI in the Character Select Screen.

- Added -
EQUI_AggroMeterWnd.xml
EQUI_BazaarConfirmationWnd.xml

- Changed -
EQUI.xml
EQUI_AchievementsWnd.xml
EQUI_AchievementWnd.xml
EQUI_Animations.xml
EQUI_BarterWnd.xml
EQUI_BarterSearchWnd.xml
EQUI_BazaarWnd.xml
EQUI_BazaarSearchWnd.xml
EQUI_CharacterListWnd.xml
EQUI_ExtendedTargetWindow.xml
EQUI_GroupWindow.xml
EQUI_LFGuildWnd.xml
EQUI_NoteWindow.xml
EQUI_OptionsWindow.xml
EQUI_PlayerWindow.xml
EQUI_TargetWindow.xml

*** Previously Updated ***

- Corrected a bug that prevented some players with older processors from launching the game.

- The EverQuest Team

Comments

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Re: hmmm
# Nov 28 2012 at 2:52 PM Rating: Decent
Scholar
18 posts
Thanks for your support Missjackie:) Everyone is entitled to their opinion Chin - I was just expressing my own. I am by no means alone in feeling the way I do and I am sure neither are you. But really........ 4 expansions on the run catering ONLY for the high end player seems to be a little biased in their favour to the detriment of the casual/newer player.
BTW Chin, I have housing on about half my characters over 2 accounts so upkeep isn't an issue as you seemed to suggest and I make more than enough to keep my toons well enough equipped for my own casual adventuring needs:)
this is ever QUEST
# Nov 28 2012 at 12:25 PM Rating: Decent
Scholar
48 posts
This happens every time.. every single expansion. No one should be surprised. Let them go play wow..game on!
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Returning Player
# Nov 28 2012 at 11:51 AM Rating: Decent
I am a returning player that doesn't have a ton of time to devote to the game. However, the game is too easy these days in my opinion. Mercs, barely any exp loss on death, lousy pvp numbers, and insane amounts of exp gained at every level until I hit 90 has all been a detriment to the game for me. It took me years to get to 64 when PoP was launched. It took me about a month to get to 90 as a casual player. The game has been dumbed down for the masses I guess.
Gripe, gripe, gripe...
# Nov 28 2012 at 10:46 AM Rating: Decent
I really don't get what all the fuss is about. The game is 13 years old, and runs on a legacy code-base. I think the developers, designers and program managers are doing the best they can with the clay they have to work with.
Lazy
# Nov 28 2012 at 10:24 AM Rating: Decent
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Avatar
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1,074 posts
What a pathetic rant.

People have to beg other players for HoT access? They couldn't do the work themselves? Are you daft? Those "other players" died a lot to do the pre tasks in Defiant armor and died a lot getting rems and doing missions.

You are just lazy. Please do not blame it on SOE game design.
____________________________
After 16 years, I'm not listing every friggin character.
Lazy
# Nov 28 2012 at 10:38 AM Rating: Decent
*
124 posts
I have full HoT access on 3 of my charas. I am not lazy. I cannot find groups in higher HoT zones. HoT lower, Grounds and Feerrott full of players.. I think YOU accuse majority of EQ players.

Edited, Nov 28th 2012 11:41am by Pegas
EQ LOSING GAMERS
# Nov 28 2012 at 9:44 AM Rating: Default
*
124 posts
EQ is building up walls to prevent their gamers to enter some certain areas.
Shall we make a summary ?
Hack affair in April 2011 (Sony lost a great amount of players)
HoT zone access requirements ( Many players had to beg or pay other players
to get the flags for access in higher tier zones)
Certain task experiences are reduced or completely removed
Very low amount of AA experience (Has been corrected with a xp bonus 1000 %
But it is still a pita)
VoA language requirements for certain spells and AAs (Has also been corrected but still not enough)

Now RoF coming !!!
How many players left who trust Sony to buy this expansion ?
I usually play in my very private zone to build up AAs for my alts.
Many other players have also their own !!! zones.
You dear developers support grouping and playing together and building up the walls in front of us.
Either we have to destroy the walls and go further or we stay in low zones to kill gnoll pups.
I personally want to play with my shaman today, maybe next day with enchanter and the other day join a raid on my warrior.
With so many barriers such as access requirements, low experience, thousands of AA, lack of players to group, bad protection of the game vs hackers...
I am no more sure that YOU wish to keep this game upright.
You should encourage the players with higher experiences and less access requirements for certain areas.
Otherwise EQ will lose more players every day..
Maybe I will have my very private server one day....
Hmmmm
# Nov 28 2012 at 5:16 AM Rating: Decent
Scholar
18 posts
This is the 4th expansion on the run where players need to be 85+ to enter any new zones. Whilst I appreciate that Sony need to provide new content for the high end players to keep them in game and interested, I feel that Sony has forgotten about the casual players who cannot spend hours and hours raiding/grouping to level up or collect the best gear and the newer players who just haven't had time to get to the levels required for these zones.
You may say 'well, don't buy the new expansions then'. On the face of it, this may seem reasonable, but then players would miss out on things like player housing, rewards and, in the new one, the automated brokering system which I personally think should have been done ages ago. So Sony draw in the casual players with 'treats' without giving them any new content to explore etc.
So here's hoping Sony will think about the casual/newer players when planning the next expansion, which I am sure is at least being planned already.
Just getting that little rant off my chest:)
Hmmmm
# Nov 28 2012 at 5:47 AM Rating: Default
11 posts
really? there are enough low lvl zones at this point, and honestly i hear you cuz i always like new content for all lvls..but if your not high enough to experience the new content, then you probably dont have anything worth buying or selling anyways...housing, now that would be a bummer, but sounds like you may not have the means to pay upkeep.. 'progression' does mean something, i expect newbie zones if or when a race is added..otherwise, ya dont buy the expansion..missing out on very little perks. ,,,,,well and, since the majority of eq players do want more high end content your just....dot dot dot
Hmmmm
# Nov 28 2012 at 7:53 AM Rating: Good
chimchimnie wrote:
really? there are enough low lvl zones at this point, and honestly i hear you cuz i always like new content for all lvls..but if your not high enough to experience the new content, then you probably dont have anything worth buying or selling anyways...housing, now that would be a bummer, but sounds like you may not have the means to pay upkeep.. 'progression' does mean something, i expect newbie zones if or when a race is added..otherwise, ya dont buy the expansion..missing out on very little perks. ,,,,,well and, since the majority of eq players do want more high end content your just....dot dot dot


I play a level 91 wizard. Not everyone wants high level content, MYSELF included! I very much prefer another expansion like The Serpent's Spine. My guild actually has quite a few people returning to the game. Having another expansion like TSS would certainly allow them to re-learn the EQ system. There's absolutely no reason to be rude about it.
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EQ2: Gwenythe: http://u.eq2wire.com/soe/character_detail/468152233422
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