Brothers of Arms

[Gert]

As this week is going to see the release of info about the AoC expansion any links, pics, discussion, etc. should be in here

Info likely to appear from Wednesday onwards...but who knows

[Lyss]

They better not raise the level cap!

[Kelerac]

I'm waiting for new race and classe! And pls God more content after 80...

[Gert]

Initial news:

Coming December 09, called Rise of the Godslayer...and some artwork:



Seems the info was posted on a couple of sites a bit too early...

[Phorkys]

First trailer
http://www.eurogamer.net/videos/exclusive-age-of-conan-rise-of-the-godslayer-trailer

[Tafale]

No new classes or level celling. Awesome news! There is no need for more classes (need badly a revamp, which has just now started with Barbarian and Bear Shaman) and upping the level celling would destroy the already limited end content and epic gear.

1.06 will be released in October. Hopefully we will be pretty good in Wing 3 by then so we can start T3 a month or two after its release (we should've mostly T2 epics by then).

Source (Norwegian)

Eurogamer

[Gert]

Nice trailer - and good news about the level and classes...

EU discussion thread is here

There are no new classes, and no more levels, but there is an alternate advancement system that will broaden the range of each existing class as well as increase its power. There isn't just more stuff to do, but there's a greater variety of it; raising wolves and tigers from cubs to fighting companions to mounts, taking sides in factional struggles.

Sounds like they're going with horiztonal levelling than vertical (faction, pets, mounts instead of char levelling). Seems interesting - and a bit like LoTRO

If anything, Rise of the Godslayer seems to be aimed squarely at the solo adventurer. This has quietly become Age of Conan's special skill in the year since its launch; it's now the casual, dip-in MMO with the hardcore attitude, more akin to Lord of the Rings Online than Darkfall, however mean its chops. The most mouthwatering items we know about in the expansion are quest rewards: the faction armour sets and the new mounts.

That'll teach me for posting before reading page 2

These mounts won't be bought from a vendor like mounts in the original game. Both of these mounts are predators and are not used to carrying riders. Thus they must be captured young and trained to bear the weight of a human.

In the case of the Tiger mount, for example, it is a religious ritual for the cult that you must join. In order to capture their tiger, the player must travel into the woods unarmed and unarmored and kill the Tigress barehanded. Then they can pluck the mewling and defenseless newborn from the den and bring it back to raise it as their own. It first becomes a pet and the player must teach the tiger all of the necessary skills for survival such as hunting, stalking and battle. Once the tiger has grown large enough and if the bond is strong enough, the player must create a saddle out of various ingredients scattered across the land. Only then will the Tiger become a mount.

and lastly:

Then we move through to Paikang which will house the tier four raid instances for the elite players to throw themselves into.

Tier 4 raids in Expansion...

[Alb]

Sounds interesting so far ...

I want a fighting companion just or my Ranger ... :/ something special ...

[Kendar]

More artwork

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[Gert]

Some gameplay footage: clicky

[Gert]

More gameplay footage - this time of the new dynamic lighting system coming with the expansion: clicky

[Gert]

IGN's preview: clicky

Some highlights:

- there are no fast-travel NPCs, players can see through the loading barriers into neighbouring zones
- each zone will have two separate factions competing with each other and the player will be forced to choose who they want to ally with
- for the new pets (wolf, tiger), you'll have to kill the mother without armour, skills or weapons...
- pets can be made into either combat pet or mount

[Arrynn]

OoooOooo looks nice! I can't wait for it to be released even though i am still only level 43 hehe

[Phorkys]

The site is up : http://riseofthegodslayer.com/

* Embark on the most savage, sexy and brutal Conan adventure yet as you descend into the shadows that have fallen over Khitai, the fabled empire of the east! Ride across the grassy steppes and see the purple pagodas of Paikang rising from the vine-choked bamboo jungles. Unravel the corruption that threatens to taint the very heart of this beautiful land forever!
* Age of Conan's highly acclaimed real-time, action-packed combat gameplay is taken to new heights with incredible martial arts moves, ancient magic, and epic weaponry. Extend your character's powers through a new alternate advancement system that allows you to unlock a vast collection of new abilities that breathes new life into the revolutionary combat system!
* Begin your adventure as a Khitan, an all-new character race, and experience a wide variety of new low-level content. Venture into the land of Khitai as you embark on new quests and acquire new rewards geared towards players fresh off the boat from Tortage! ( It will be fun to start a new char of Kithai race )
* A wealth of new content for high-level players! Explore vast overland regions such as the serene Chosain Province or the desert of black sand known as Kara Korum, and delve into numerous new dungeons such as the magnificent Pillars of Heaven. Battle all-new monsters and acquire countless new rewards such as fantastic weapons and armor sets!
* Engage yourself in a mature and deep storyline that brings dramatic storytelling techniques into high-level gameplay. Through hundreds of new, lovingly crafted quests you will follow in the footsteps of Conan himself, where you will discover that the actions of the great barbarian have caused a great upheaval in this far flung land. The truth behind King Conan's actions are twisted and hidden amongst the moral shades of grey of Kithan politics!
* Experience the true power of DirectX 10 graphics with enhanced visuals and new groundbreaking graphical features that brings the land of Khitai to life. The new visual style of the east will also provide a fresh, new look on Hyboria - the savage world of Conan!
* Pick your side! Join one of many warring factions of Khitai, complete assignments for them and slaughter their enemies to reap the exclusive rewards. As you gain influence in a faction you will earn ranks which in turn can be used to unlock incredible treasures. But watch your back, because the enemies of your friends will not hesitate to stab you in your back!
* Explore the lands of Kithai from the back of two new mounts - the Wolf and the Tiger. Starting out as defenseless pets, these creatures will follow by your side and can be grown into ferocious fighting companions through a series of unique quests. Ultimately you will be able to grow them into spectacular mounts that will carry you on your adventures!

[Kownan]

wonder how much a Tiger mounts gona cost >8)

[Gert]

Nothing - if you check the articles, you have to fight the mother tiger/wolf without skills/equipment; train the baby tiger/wolf up to fight alongside you then if the pet is happy enough you can then train it to be a mount and craft a saddle for it...also seems it's faction dependant as well (so one faction has the wolf and the other the tiger).

[Gert]

Another interview: clicky

One little highlight from that I haven't see elsewhere:

ZAM: So the landmarks—are players going to be able to explore all of those? Will they be points of reference, or will they be places that players will be able to interact with?

Joel Bylos: One of the things we're doing, for example...In the lore of Khitai, it's the land of 999,999 gods—so one of the things we've done is design this place where there are these little shrines all over, in every playfield. You'll find them in ruins, you'll find them in half-buried mosques—you'll find these little shrines everywhere. It's actually an optional quest; as you go through, you can go through to each and every one of these shrines, and if you play the right emote, something will happen. There are actually quests to find them, and we're adding things like 'digging spots' for finding buried treasure.

ZAM: How many factions can players expect to sway in Rise of the Godslayer?

Morrison: Ten main factions and two hidden ones...

and more mount info:

ZAM: You mentioned two new mounts; the wolf and the tiger, and that they will have more uses than just speed. Can you tell us about them?

Bylos: The tiger is the fastest sprinting mount; so you get a quick burst of power, but only for a short amount of time. The wolf...I'm not going to talk about yet, actually. We're still working on exactly what we want it to do, and we have some ideas that we think players will like—but we're not quite ready to talk about it yet.

ZAM: Are these mounts going to be tiered at all?

Morrison: No, it's like Joel said—it's about doing the quest line. It's going to have to be a fairly epic quest that the players have to go through to complete to get the mount.

ZAM: How long are these epic quests going to take players?

Morrison: I think that will be tweaked a little bit. It's currently going to be up to nine or 10 quests, once you have the faction to be able to start. You'll have to build up loyalty with a specific faction that you have to find in the expansion to be able to start the quest.

Bylos: And it's 15. Fifteen or 17 quests. You have to rear it from a cub. You have to go through quests to teach it to hunt.

[Aboli]

This sounds killer!!!!!! i want a tiger!!!! Any ideas when it will be released??? and what classes u can be with the new race???

[Gert]

No release date yet...and no info on what classes you can be as a Khitan either.

[Kownan]

that sounds pretty cool in regards to the mounts than just grinding Egg's or something ( nether drakes Wow anyone )

[Duskchild]

beautiful! downright staggering. I cannot wait to see this new dynamic lightning feat.
I heard some talk about december this year would be the release.. not that I know, but that's what I heard.

[Gert]

Should be more news coming over the next week as PAX and DragonCon are on - Funcom is at both showing RotGS...

[DanDanUK]

Oo come back from traveling for a couple of months to find this great info about the games expansion some interesting design they are implementing including advance skill progression, can't wait to play AOC again missed it but still had some good times without it. Will see you guys on AOC in about two weeks after found a job

Peace
Dan

[Gert]

/off-topic

Welcome Back Dan - hope you had a good time and see you in AoC soon

[DanDanUK]

a few trailers you might have seen or not here
http://www.gametrailers.com/game/age-of-conan-rise-of-the/11931

nice scenic view of khitai