Joanne tries her hand on this weeks Grab Bag over on the Camelot Herald. This weeks Q&A's cover: siege weapons in TOA zones, stealth,  Vampiirs Determination,  and other gems. Read on to learn more:

Q. I have made a Level 50 Warrior, and I got him to Legendary status for Siegecraft. I can make any siege weapon and deploy it, but y’all forgot about ToA areas. There is one Artifact and a Master Level that needs a ram to make the task of completing it easier. When I tried to deploy a ram, I needed a siege tent and where do I put up a siege tent in Atlantis?

A. For this question, I went straight to the Lady of Jewels: There are still four rams that can be deployed without a siege tent. Anything below the level of “sturdy” works this way, so the makeshift siege ram, battered siege ram, worn siege ram, and siege ram can still be used for encounters such as Egg of Youth.

Q. I was having a talk with guild mates about stealth. They said that stealth has no benefit over a combined 50. According to them; 37+13 is the same as 33+17 or even 50+15. I am curious to find out the truth finally. Thanks

A. The Balancinator was eager to find the answer for this one:  There is an effect when stealth goes over 50, but it is very small. The complete answer is contained in this grab bag from 2004: http://www.camelotherald.com/more/1700.shtml

Q. The Midwinter Madrigal quest was great for getting people out into the Frontier and taking a tower!  It also expanded my vocabulary.

If we were sloppy and picked the wrong Midwinter Cloak for our class, is there anyway to trade it in for another? Or rerun the quest for the correct one?

A. The Dragon Lady gazed thoughtfully at the ceiling for this one: I’m afraid I must advise players that it is still very important to be cautious when selecting a quest reward. Though we do occasionally implement turn in or trade quests, those situations are the exception, not the rule. However, don’t despair!  The event cloaks are unique in that a version of them is offered every few months. While these cloaks may not be identical, they will share certain stats – compare the cloak of the realm from the Dragon’s Revenge with the Midwinter Madrigal cloak. If you missed a cloak or selected the wrong one you should be able to find a similar one in a future holiday or campaign event. Be sure to keep your eye on the Herald, events are happening all the time!

Q. In the new style listings for 1.92 it shows the level 15 style Tarantula as being an off-Block style for Vampiirs.  Since Vampiirs only get a base small shield, and only at Champion Level 3, I'm assuming that it is actually staying as an off-Parry style, as it currently is, but I know I'm not the only one that would like some reassurance.

A. After a bit of investigation, the Balancinator replied with: Yes, it is a parry reactionary style. The Vampiir style 'Tarantula' posted on the Pendragon cheat sheet is inaccurate. Thank you for bringing it to our attention.

Q. I was wondering if the one of the all mighty lords could bring a solution to this. I've read in forums conflicting reports that Irrepressible Mythirians (CC reduction) do not stack over Determination, which would mean that getting a Greater Irrepressible Mythirian (4) and Determination 1 would combine to become Determination 5, but if I get Determination 2 it won't pass over a total of 5.

So in other words, if this is true, does it mean that it's a waste of RA points to get more than Determination 1 with this Mythirian since the reduction won't increase?

A. I went straight to the Balancinator for this one: It seems that you are confused on the mechanics of the realm ability 'Determination'.

 Determination 1 - Provides a 4% crowd control reduction.
 Determination 2 - Provides an 8% crowd control reduction.
 Determination 3 - Provides a 20% crowd control reduction.
 Determination 4 - Provides a 38% crowd control reduction.
 Determination 5 - Provides a 55% crowd control reduction.

The Greater Irrepressible Mythirian adds 4% crowd control reduction.

No, you cannot get the effects of Determination 5 by stacking Determination 1 with the Greater Irrepressible Mythirian.  Yes, the Mythirian does stack with Determination 5.  If you have high resists, Stoicism, and Determination 5 you may only see a small difference in the crowd control reduction using this mythirian.  It is because your 4% reduction equates to less than 1 second.

Q. One of the hints on the loading screen says to check walls and doors for damage if a tower/keep is not upgrading. This implies that if I damage an enemy tower ever so little it will stop upgrading, maybe stay green forever if no-one notices.

Is this true?

A. I ran over to our Shining Cavalier and he was happy to explain how it works: Walls and towers will start repairing themselves if they are not under attack for an hour.  After that hour, they will repair themselves by 5% of their total and then repair another 5% every hour for the main keep and every half hour for the other structures, until they're completely repaired.  That means that it takes at most 20 hours for the main keep to repair itself, and 10 hours for the towers.

On the PvE ruleset, the keeps repair to 100% after one hour of not being under attack.


ANNOUNCEMENTS

Tomorrow is Saturday, February 2nd and that means it’s time for the Scrambling Scavenger Riddle Race on Pendragon. Start time is 1:30pm EST. Come and join the fun as we see who will win the Ring of Riddles!

The very first Camelot Road Trip of the year is almost here. We’ll have food, prizes and we’ll toss in a couple of Devs and a Community Weenie as well to test your knowledge.  Come out and join us in Jacksonville, Florida on March 1st.  Be sure to RSVP so we can order enough snacks for everyone.

The next time that you find yourself saying “Grats!” to a friend or Guildie on their accomplishments, whether it is getting to Level 50, a new Realm Rank or a spiffy new title, take a moment and send it to the Scroll of Valor. You’ll be glad you did – so will your friends!

The Caerleon and Devon clustering is almost here. They are scheduled to be clustered on Wednesday, February 6th. As always please keep an eye on the Herald for any additional news and updates.

Well, that’s it for my first Grab Bag, I think I will go home and celebrate with a hot fudge sundae, just drizzling with chocolate gooey goodness.  It’s the perfect treat to end a wonderful week!

I’ll see you folks on Pendragon tomorrow; get your racing boots on!  Have a great weekend.