Well... I played Ultima Online (very casually) for two years, and moved on to FFXI when it came out. I'm told that FFXI resembles EQ a good deal, and that got me looking into playing EQ for the first time.
FFXI is a beautifully done game, but it's very small right now and that frustrates me. Before too long I think it's possible that I will have memorized every item I can ever possibly get for my race and class. I want to have more options, but I've heard some very negative things about EQ and I'd like some reassurance before I make the big move. Mainly about one thing...
Inflation: I've heard that due to cash-for-ingame-money sites, inflation in EQ is unbelievable and that you almost have to pay RL money for ingame currency. How much truth is there to this? I really enjoy being relatively wealthy in FFXI (due to playing a thief and knowing what and where to camp) and I'd like to be able to get the same feeling in Everquest without having to work overtime IRL. NOTE: I'm not saying that I want to be able to buy ubergear on my second day, but like I said, I heard some pretty amazing things about plat sales IRL and I don't want to be forced into that kind of thing. I'd be better off staying where I'm at if things are as bad as all that.
So who wants to give me some good advice? I'd like to hear some impressions from people who play both FFXI and EQ so I can get some pros and cons. :)
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You certainly don't have to pay RL cash for money or items in game. Some lazy people do it, but no one has to.
Haven't played FFXI so can't comment there, sorry.
Haven't played FFXI so can't comment there, sorry.
In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.
What Samira said.
If you liked FFXI the one thing that will be a culture shock for you to deal with is the graphics. EQ looks very very different. It is not a game designed to have graphic appeal, it is much more about playability and mob artificial inteligence.
Some people are turned off by the nature of EQ graphics and never get past it, which is a pity.
The inflation thing is totally a matter of perception. There is a current phase sweeping the game where a large group of people are preffering to play solo and this forces them to focuss on buying the most desirable equipment. This is because the game is designed to played in a team format and at all levels the "best" equipment requires a team of people to work together to obtain it.
In effect, equipping one another.
If you play the game in this way you have no need to buy anything and getting money and going to the bazaar is unnecessary.
A point a lot of newer players seem to have missed is that a team of characters who may have just mediocre gear, working together and using intelligent strategies can take mobs way beyond their level, mobs that someone soloing simply could never contemplate taking on.
So you have a choice, take the soloing route and equippment inflation is a very serious issue. Take the team route and it is of little consequence.
Edit... OK, I can see someone is going to take me literally over the "no need to buy anything" statement. Of course you need to buy spells, tomes and other odds and end. But the these are low cost items and you will naturally accumulate the PP you need for this stuff as you play. The point was, that you don't "need" to raise PP to buy your armour or weapons, this is a matter of choice.
Edited, Thu Feb 26 00:41:57 2004 by Iluien
If you liked FFXI the one thing that will be a culture shock for you to deal with is the graphics. EQ looks very very different. It is not a game designed to have graphic appeal, it is much more about playability and mob artificial inteligence.
Some people are turned off by the nature of EQ graphics and never get past it, which is a pity.
The inflation thing is totally a matter of perception. There is a current phase sweeping the game where a large group of people are preffering to play solo and this forces them to focuss on buying the most desirable equipment. This is because the game is designed to played in a team format and at all levels the "best" equipment requires a team of people to work together to obtain it.
In effect, equipping one another.
If you play the game in this way you have no need to buy anything and getting money and going to the bazaar is unnecessary.
A point a lot of newer players seem to have missed is that a team of characters who may have just mediocre gear, working together and using intelligent strategies can take mobs way beyond their level, mobs that someone soloing simply could never contemplate taking on.
So you have a choice, take the soloing route and equippment inflation is a very serious issue. Take the team route and it is of little consequence.
Edit... OK, I can see someone is going to take me literally over the "no need to buy anything" statement. Of course you need to buy spells, tomes and other odds and end. But the these are low cost items and you will naturally accumulate the PP you need for this stuff as you play. The point was, that you don't "need" to raise PP to buy your armour or weapons, this is a matter of choice.
Edited, Thu Feb 26 00:41:57 2004 by Iluien
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I have both FF and Eq and FF doesnt even compare. I just recently cancelled my FF subscription because I only played Eq, and it was a waste of money to pay for both. I played FF for a week or two and it got played out and I got sick of not being able to understand the players with different languages. Eq is way more fun and customizable. In eq you can customize alot of stuff that is not even an option in FF. As far as the plat buying I'm afraid alot of people do that. There is a web site you can choose to go to and pay real cash for plat or accounts. Seems kinda silly, paying real money for pretend money. Even with all that Eq still is better than FF IMO, even if you don't waste money on plat.
I have played EQ since it began. I am not by any means rich, but I also have more game money than I need.
People purchase EQ platinum for RL dollars for only one reason - to bypass content in the game. They don't want to play the game to build up their items.
If you play the game because you enjoy it, and you enjoy getting your own items or helping friends get theirs then there is no need at all for purchasing game items or money.
Yes, it takes a long time in EQ to build up huge piles of cash. You won't be rich until high levels. But, you can always get the plat you need to get the core items for your level.
If people want to buy plat, I have no issue with it. But, if you bypass 90% of the game because you buy plat/gear/characters then you give up all right to complain about lack of content.
People purchase EQ platinum for RL dollars for only one reason - to bypass content in the game. They don't want to play the game to build up their items.
If you play the game because you enjoy it, and you enjoy getting your own items or helping friends get theirs then there is no need at all for purchasing game items or money.
Yes, it takes a long time in EQ to build up huge piles of cash. You won't be rich until high levels. But, you can always get the plat you need to get the core items for your level.
If people want to buy plat, I have no issue with it. But, if you bypass 90% of the game because you buy plat/gear/characters then you give up all right to complain about lack of content.
It does take boatloads of money to buy Uberest items in EQ. Unless you can dedicate 30-40 hours a week to it, you will probably never be able to afford the uberest items unless you purchase PP.
That being said, there is such a huge range of items in EQ, Most gear that is barely under uberest is very affordable to most players after a reasonable amount of time played. Unlike FFXI where you might have 2 pieces of gear wearable at your level/class/slot you could literly have dozens or even hundreds in EQ ranging from dirt cheap to outragesly expensive.
FFXI is about having <certain suit of armor> at each lvl. You have to upgrade all of your gear every 3 levels or so. In EQ you may upgrade some slots every 5 levels, and some slots only 2 or 3 times all the way to 65. It's not as gear centric as FFXI, most people will not inspect you, looking for all lvlX leather gear before allowing you into their group.
You can be a very effective player in most classes in EQ in your Newbie armor for a very long time. Your armor in EQ will not make you UBER it will be your play quality. There are people that are concerned about whos Uberer in EQ but the vast majority of people are too busy playing and having fun to worry about that.
That being said, there is such a huge range of items in EQ, Most gear that is barely under uberest is very affordable to most players after a reasonable amount of time played. Unlike FFXI where you might have 2 pieces of gear wearable at your level/class/slot you could literly have dozens or even hundreds in EQ ranging from dirt cheap to outragesly expensive.
FFXI is about having <certain suit of armor> at each lvl. You have to upgrade all of your gear every 3 levels or so. In EQ you may upgrade some slots every 5 levels, and some slots only 2 or 3 times all the way to 65. It's not as gear centric as FFXI, most people will not inspect you, looking for all lvlX leather gear before allowing you into their group.
You can be a very effective player in most classes in EQ in your Newbie armor for a very long time. Your armor in EQ will not make you UBER it will be your play quality. There are people that are concerned about whos Uberer in EQ but the vast majority of people are too busy playing and having fun to worry about that.
Nicroll 65 Assassin
Teltorid 52 Druid
Aude Sapere
Oh hell camp me all you want f**kers. I own this site and thus I own you. - Allakhazam
Teltorid 52 Druid
Aude Sapere
Oh hell camp me all you want f**kers. I own this site and thus I own you. - Allakhazam
I have been playing EQ now for about 3 years. My wife and I play together along with my sis-in-law and a in-game friend that we picked up trying to solo ina zone that wsn't too friendly to soloers. He's been in our little group for over 2 years now. We have all managed to get all the equipment that we need to be sucessfull at the current level as we have progressed in the game. Not rich, but able to buy what we can't find in the game if there is something that we feel we need. I have NO use for those folks who feel they need to buy plat with RL money. And, that's not a situation that is unique to EQ - if you go look at the sites that sell in-game currency for RL money, you will find that they are involved in every game that has an in-game player based economy. Just ignore them and develope a group of friends in the game and, in my opinion ( which is probably worth very little, as I'm an old fart ) you will find that EQ is a tremendous game that is so hugh that you will probably never see all of it.
Hello Rachael,
If you do plan to play I would like to invite you to a newbie vhar guild...lots of veterans and newbies alike in guild and guild is only for newer chars at the moment read on if interested...
We where founded by 10 friends and now have a little over 20 members...We where tagged last week and are a new guild....We started this new guild because there where no GUILDS with our ideals of how we would like to play and knew there must be others like us...
The premise of our GUILD...To raise a complete guild of non-twinked chars from level 1 on to level 65 ...here is where we get different...We want to Experience as much as EQ has to offer from level 1 - 55... exploring every inch of content and questing as much as possible...We DO NOT want to level to 55 using 4 zones and missing all the content with these chars...WE will maintain level caps in reverse of most meaning you can be no higher than the current set level to participate on guild outings...RIGHT now our cap is nothing higher than level 12 and no twinks....ANOTHER GOAL is to ensure we maintain a MATURE player base over 18 years old as of now our player base is between 18 and 63 years old...our median is about 29/30 years old, married with two kids...we have a well balanced group of males and female players as well....
So Roll up a char and join us if this appeals to you...
If this does appeal to you, check out our website...
Loreseekers.guildportal.com (( no www in front))
Cruise our site and participate on the boards and sign up for upcoming events and if you decide we are right for you and you for us apply for membership in a 5 question survey...
We are hitting Befallen Saturday night... should be a blast
Hope to see other mature players with our same vision come to the site and join us...
You may have alts as well but the only ones eligible for guild events are those within the current level range of participation...
Regards
Ryan - Guild Leader - Lore Seekers of Norrath
If you do plan to play I would like to invite you to a newbie vhar guild...lots of veterans and newbies alike in guild and guild is only for newer chars at the moment read on if interested...
We where founded by 10 friends and now have a little over 20 members...We where tagged last week and are a new guild....We started this new guild because there where no GUILDS with our ideals of how we would like to play and knew there must be others like us...
The premise of our GUILD...To raise a complete guild of non-twinked chars from level 1 on to level 65 ...here is where we get different...We want to Experience as much as EQ has to offer from level 1 - 55... exploring every inch of content and questing as much as possible...We DO NOT want to level to 55 using 4 zones and missing all the content with these chars...WE will maintain level caps in reverse of most meaning you can be no higher than the current set level to participate on guild outings...RIGHT now our cap is nothing higher than level 12 and no twinks....ANOTHER GOAL is to ensure we maintain a MATURE player base over 18 years old as of now our player base is between 18 and 63 years old...our median is about 29/30 years old, married with two kids...we have a well balanced group of males and female players as well....
So Roll up a char and join us if this appeals to you...
If this does appeal to you, check out our website...
Loreseekers.guildportal.com (( no www in front))
Cruise our site and participate on the boards and sign up for upcoming events and if you decide we are right for you and you for us apply for membership in a 5 question survey...
We are hitting Befallen Saturday night... should be a blast
Hope to see other mature players with our same vision come to the site and join us...
You may have alts as well but the only ones eligible for guild events are those within the current level range of participation...
Regards
Ryan - Guild Leader - Lore Seekers of Norrath
In my opinion, EQ is great. I have been playing for just a few months now. My husband and I both play and we try to collect things that are worth a bit of money. Meaning I am broke :) We just do what we can to get moderate equipment for our levels. I personally think paying RL cash for platinum is insane. However yes there are very nice items that I will never own that cost in the 10k-20k range but I feel that I don't need them. I usually play in a group but I also solo and I do well in both cases with just the money I have made doing normal killing and looting. So I hope you decide to join and not worry about those UBER items. Good luck, hope this helps
Guvwenea
Guvwenea
Quote:
I heard some pretty amazing things about plat sales IRL and I don't want to be forced into that kind of thing
Nobody is forced to buy plat. Some people feel as long as they can afford it, why shouldn't they buy themselves into uberness? This is a touchy subject for many players.
Doesn't a person get their first 30 days on EQ free? If so, just come on in and give it a test drive. I have a hunch you'll like it. I'm sorry I can't compare EQ to FFXI for you.
Especially at the lower levels, level appropriate gear is cheap and easy to get. Most races have "newbie quests" designed to equip you in suit of magical armor with bonuses to your class appropriate stats (extra wisdom for healers, intelligence for casters, etc). These require nothing beyond drops from mobs you'd normally be fighting anyway. Some are harder than others, but even if you don't complete 100% of your suit, you're still getting some free useful stuff at early levels.
As you progress, most lowbie equipment is still cheap as hell. Given the lack of item decay, there's stuff that's been floating around the game for literally four-odd years. Mobs keep dropping it, it keeps collecting and eventually you can buy decent lowbie gear for 10-200pp.
Eventually gear WILL get pricier. The idea is that you will either sell stuff to afford it or else hunt the mobs who drop it. If being relatively wealthy is important to you, I'd suggest picking a class with decent solo abilities so you can take time off from levelling to farm cash. If you're lucky, you'll hit points where you can hunt mobs for excellent money AND good experience. Treasure those moments
Finally, I'd be remiss not to mention the Lost Dungeons of Norrath expansion. In LDoN, you go on timed adventures for points. Points may then be spent on gear. Some of the best gear available from LDoN rivals much of the higher level gear in the game (not the highest, but it's still damn nice stuff). You can get a breastplate, for instance, comparable to ones that sell for 400k (at least on my server). It takes time to do the missions, of course, but it's certainly a valid path to expensive quality gear without the expense.
As you progress, most lowbie equipment is still cheap as hell. Given the lack of item decay, there's stuff that's been floating around the game for literally four-odd years. Mobs keep dropping it, it keeps collecting and eventually you can buy decent lowbie gear for 10-200pp.
Eventually gear WILL get pricier. The idea is that you will either sell stuff to afford it or else hunt the mobs who drop it. If being relatively wealthy is important to you, I'd suggest picking a class with decent solo abilities so you can take time off from levelling to farm cash. If you're lucky, you'll hit points where you can hunt mobs for excellent money AND good experience. Treasure those moments
Finally, I'd be remiss not to mention the Lost Dungeons of Norrath expansion. In LDoN, you go on timed adventures for points. Points may then be spent on gear. Some of the best gear available from LDoN rivals much of the higher level gear in the game (not the highest, but it's still damn nice stuff). You can get a breastplate, for instance, comparable to ones that sell for 400k (at least on my server). It takes time to do the missions, of course, but it's certainly a valid path to expensive quality gear without the expense.
Belkira wrote:
Wow. Regular ol' Joph fan club in here.
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