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Read here
For those with no care to link:
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If the only thing holding you back from trying out Turbine Entertainment’s MMO Dungeons and Dragons Online was the thought of yet another monthly subscription fee, then last week’s announcement about the game becoming the first MMO to re-launch as a free-to-play game was no doubt quite a pleasant thing to hear.
Well, CrispyGamer recently interviewed DDO (or as it's now known, D&D Online Unlimited) executive producer Fernando Paiz and Turbine Entertainment PR manager Adam Mersky about the decision to shift to the free model.
Adam Mersky explains:
“So we knew several years ago that free to play was something that was going to grow and definitely come to the west and North America — and Europe in particular — and that we had to be in it…And how were we going to go about that? Were we going to import games, were we going to create a new title after the Asian model? And after we researched it and learned more about how things worked, how they should work and what didn’t work that we’d like to improve, we looked at DDO and said, 'This is a pretty good fit for this model.'"
The game will still offer a VIP subscription service for those hardcore fans seriously invested in the game, but, as Paiz explains, the free-to-play model ensures “tons of new people” will now be compelled to try the game, and, like any MMO, the more players, the better.
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Free? That's still overpriced for DDO...
That game is terrible.
It is one of the Best MMOs I have ever played. I enjoyed the game for 3 years.. I only stopped playing recently due to slow down in release of expansions.
It seems the slow down was caused by the major upgrade they are making now to support the new re-release of the game..They are stating one the new massive expansion is released they will go back to thier regular schedule.
Once, what they are calling Dungeons & Dragons: Online Eberron Unlimited is released this summer, I will get back into the game.
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I've played this game sporadically since beta but quit when I couldn't get more friends to play. This solves that problem!
The tactical game play makes combat exciting and the dungeons are very well done. The adventures are fun to run and have excellent graphics. The spiders still give me the creeps!
I would highly recommend giving it a try once it goes free.
SM
Wayfinder, PaizoCon Founder
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I played DDO for about a year, starting at its launch. I quit because I could not get past 5th level...no one else was playing at that level. They were either just starting, or were playing WAY MORE than I was, and jetted right past me to 10+. I got sick of playing the Waterworks over and over and over and over.
Now that this is free-ish, I would be interested in playing again. Question is: Do I just reinstall my old DDO off the DVD and let the system update me, or is this DDO Unlimited a whole new game?
Hmmmmmm.
I've tried the beta this weekend, and I rather enjoyed it. I have no experience with mmorpgs (insert snarky 4e comment), so this was a fun first time for me.
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Now that this is free-ish, I would be interested in playing again. Question is: Do I just reinstall my old DDO off the DVD and let the system update me, or is this DDO Unlimited a whole new game?
Hmmmmmm.
it is not a whole new game. but you may be better off downloading it from scratch, when the update it.
Due to its inherent d20 roots, DDO is actually rather unique in its gameplay and statistical systems among MMORPGs. I played it back when the level cap was 10, and had a blast for a few months, but I also had a freind who regularily played with me. I renewed my account just last month after sneakily using a 10 day trial on a new account to see what features had been added. And a lot has.
It seems like DDO:EU will have less than full content (I think you can't make monks with the basic package). But you can either upgrade to the full package at 15 a month, or apparently (this is just my interpretation) you can upgrade certain parts of your account for one time fees. I could be totally wrong about that though.
Overall, I love it for when I need a break from WoW, and I have to admit, after 3 years of WoW and 3 months of DDO, I made more "memorable moments" playing DDO, just because my freind and I were able to recognize and nostalgia due to the D&D connection.
I still remember the way my stomach dropped as my warforged cleric marched down the spiral stairs to come face to face with a rust monster for the first time. My freinds halfling bard just watched as I turned around and ran like a girl, screaming for him to "Get it off me!" over voice chat.
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I still remember the way my stomach dropped as my warforged cleric marched down the spiral stairs to come face to face with a rust monster for the first time. My freinds halfling bard just watched as I turned around and ran like a girl, screaming for him to "Get it off me!" over voice chat.
That would be VoN 5, Part 5 in the Dragon Raid... What good memories.. still odd that DDO makes Rust Monsters Love Warforged soo much, since that is not part of D&D, especially since WarFOrged are mostly made of everything but Metal..*Mostly Wood*
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32
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This is... interesting news.
I played DDO from just after release for over 2 years. I LOVED IT, but due to not enough spare cash and lack of time to commit to it I sadly gave it away. Making it free has rekindled my interest in it. I think I may check it out!
Question: Do we get to keep our old characters, or do we start with fresh ones? I had a level 16 Fighter/Pally, and it took me the better part of those two years to get her there at the rate I played. Starting again from scratch would be sad (not to mention the fact that she's a Drow and I can just see Drow being part of the Paid Subscription). :(
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T
Question: Do we get to keep our old characters, or do we start with fresh ones? I had a level 16 Fighter/Pally, and it took me the better part of those two years to get her there at the rate I played. Starting again from scratch would be sad (not to mention the fact that she's a Drow and I can just see Drow being part of the Paid Subscription). :(
You get to keep your old Characters, but with the free account you get only 4, so you have to pick 4 of them, you can buy more character slots to pick your others.
Normally I think Drow is not part of the Free.. But I think for Old accounts it is..
But Warforges and Monks are not. You need to pay a one time fee to play a Warforged or Monk.
DDO, like many other MMOs, is considerably funner when played with friends. I may have to resurrect my account.
DDO, like many other MMOs, is considerably funner when played with friends.
Quoted for truth.
The point of MMORPGs, or online games in general, is the interaction with other players, the community.
And although it is cool to meet new friends in the game while playing with them, it is great to be able to be with actual friends from real life, like from a gaming table.
Often, the online game becomes an extension of the pen and paper one.
This is why players often recreate their PnP characters, to keep playing them between table sessions.
Sometimes it might not really follow the lore of the online game (like a D&D character converted to WoW), but who cares if you are having fun and roleplaying anyway ?
Hey, i was even roleplaying in Diablo :D
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I've been playing DDO for almost 3 years now, and this Free 2 Play news is the best thing yet for the game. Most of my friends play WoW, and I still have no desire to play it; however, if they offered Free 2 Play, I'd download it and try it. There is no reason now to not play DDO; give it a try, there's nothing to lose. The game opens its doors officially on August 6th for F2P players; I hope to see you in game! I play on the Sarlona server and head up the Browncoats guild; look for Wash. Look me up and mention Paizo and I'll invite you to my guild no questions asked!!!!
It's going to be fun!!!!!!!
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T
Question: Do we get to keep our old characters, or do we start with fresh ones? I had a level 16 Fighter/Pally, and it took me the better part of those two years to get her there at the rate I played. Starting again from scratch would be sad (not to mention the fact that she's a Drow and I can just see Drow being part of the Paid Subscription). :(You get to keep your old Characters, but with the free account you get only 4, so you have to pick 4 of them, you can buy more character slots to pick your others.
Normally I think Drow is not part of the Free.. But I think for Old accounts it is..
But Warforges and Monks are not. You need to pay a one time fee to play a Warforged or Monk.
Wait a minute... you mean I can't play my old Warforged Barbarian unless I pay for him... even if he's already like level 16? :-/ Not cool.
Of course my WF was only like level 4, but still.
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Wait a minute... you mean I can't play my old Warforged Barbarian unless I pay for him... even if he's already like level 16? :-/ Not cool.Of course my WF was only like level 4, but still.
From what I've heard, your old toons are never let go. And if the WF was one of the 4 that you decided to keep, you would not have to repay for the ability to have a WF.
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Ok, that's good.
Although thinking through my characters, I have to keep Ranger 1, since he was my main and and is level 15 or so. I'd likely keep my 2nd Ranger since it was a totally different build. (1 was my launch toon and built for ranged combat... if they ever make it worthwhile, 2 was my TWF build). I'd have to keep my Intimitank Fighter, really my 1st alt. And I'd probably keep one of my Rogues...
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From what I've heard, your old toons are never let go. And if the WF was one of the 4 that you decided to keep, you would not have to repay for the ability to have a WF.
Wait a minute... you mean I can't play my old Warforged Barbarian unless I pay for him... even if he's already like level 16? :-/ Not cool.Of course my WF was only like level 4, but still.
You do... There are some races that do not come with the free to play even if you where a susbscriber customer before. Warforged is one of them, Maybe Drow to... but unsure on that.
Edit: His Warfirged is still there, he just can't use it unless he pays for that race..
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I read the site notes.
Free Play you get access to 2 characters.
You have access to Stormreach and it's environs (whatever that means)
Warforged and Drow are paid contents
Monks are paid content.
You can only play to level 10, You can either buy Level sigils, or hope you get 1 in a chest, to Level. More details on that have not been released.
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Wayfinder, PaizoCon Founder
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Warforged and Drow are paid contents
(sigh) Guess I'll have to pay to play my warforged ranger, Shaft!
Shaft!
Who's the cat that won't cop out
When there's danger all about?
SHAFT!
Right On!
They say this cat Shaft is a bad mother
SHUT YOUR MOUTH!
I'm talkin' 'bout Shaft.
THEN WE CAN DIG IT
I'll try it if it's truly free not some subscription service that gives you a couple of months free then charges you.
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Well, it won't be "free" as such, if my understanding of the business model they will be using is correct. If they use the model they use in Asia a lot, you get the basic game free but if you want certain additional content you have to pay a one-off fee to get it. That might be specific types of item or whatever - I'm not sure as the only MMORPG I play currently is WoW, which is of course subscription based.
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I found this on their website. Gives you a pretty good idea of the differences between a paid and free account.
Paid Vs Free
Turbine Points 500 per month free / Buy (I suppose this is for the game feature store?)
Classes Free / can purchase Monk & others
Races Free / Can buy Warforged & Drow
Geography All included free / Stormreach & vicinity
Adventure Packs All included / Some free, can purchase others
Character Slots 10 / 2 (can purchase more)
Shared Bank Slot Included free / Can purchase
Login Queue Priority / Standard
Chat Unlimited / Limited
Auctions Unlimited / Limited
Mail Unlimited / Limited
Gold Storage Unlimited / Limited
Customer Service Full / Self-service online
Beta Priority High / Normal
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I found this on their website. Gives you a pretty good idea of the differences between a paid and free account.
Paid Vs Free
Turbine Points 500 per month free / Buy (I suppose this is for the game feature store?)
Classes Free / can purchase Monk & others
Races Free / Can buy Warforged & Drow
Geography All included free / Stormreach & vicinity
Adventure Packs All included / Some free, can purchase others
Character Slots 10 / 2 (can purchase more)
Shared Bank Slot Included free / Can purchase
Login Queue Priority / Standard
Chat Unlimited / Limited
Auctions Unlimited / Limited
Mail Unlimited / Limited
Gold Storage Unlimited / Limited
Customer Service Full / Self-service online
Beta Priority High / Normal
Another thing, you can only go up to Level 10 with free, to level beyond that you either need to find a Level Sigil in a chest or buy one. Subscribers can go to Level 20 starting next update.
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RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32
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Another thing, you can only go up to Level 10 with free, to level beyond that you either need to find a Level Sigil in a chest or buy one. Subscribers can go to Level 20 starting next update.I found this on their website. Gives you a pretty good idea of the differences between a paid and free account.
Paid Vs Free
Turbine Points 500 per month free / Buy (I suppose this is for the game feature store?)
Classes Free / can purchase Monk & others
Races Free / Can buy Warforged & Drow
Geography All included free / Stormreach & vicinity
Adventure Packs All included / Some free, can purchase others
Character Slots 10 / 2 (can purchase more)
Shared Bank Slot Included free / Can purchase
Login Queue Priority / Standard
Chat Unlimited / Limited
Auctions Unlimited / Limited
Mail Unlimited / Limited
Gold Storage Unlimited / Limited
Customer Service Full / Self-service online
Beta Priority High / Normal
So all of this basically means that I'll be unable to reavtivate my Level 15.5 Vorpal Longsword wielding Drow Fighter/Paladin under the free play model... :(
This is awesome news. I still have my DDO game tucked around in my case of games. I was dreading having to sign up for a subscription, but was curious to give it a try again. The idea that I can play it for free is great! I've just gotten into Eberron with 4e so the game means a fair bit more to me now too. This should be fun.
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Not sure if the live version will work this way, but in the beta test, you can purchase the WF race and the classes with points for the online store.you earn points for completing quests as well as the 100 favor mark and the 400 favor mark ( since drow are now purchased instead of earned.)You may also buy these points with your credit card or whatever.As a subscriber( been playing since the first beta...) I'm not sure which areas and quests are purchased and which are free, but it seems quite a few will have to be purchased.The level cap is going to be up to 20, and they have intoduced Favored Souls as well. I personally love the game even tho in 3+years I haven't made any toon up to the current cap at 16. My main toon is a 14th lvl cleric named Luarathoria on Sarlona. I have 9 other toons as well.....Must be the DM in me I like variety.8).
other toons are:
Rampartt paladin 6 human
Gorignak fighter 8 elven
Harsk [thx paizo;)] ranger 7 dwarven
Azurana ranger 6/wizard 1(arcane archer) drow
Blendin rogue 2/wizard 2 warforged
Vuatria cleric 6 drow
Emeralda cleric 1/ wizard 7 elven
Vikkinain cleric 3/rogue 2/fighter 1 drow
Minnion cleric 1/sorceror 4 warforged soon to be deleted( to make a FS when unlimited goes live)
If your on send me a tell....8)
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So all of this basically means that I'll be unable to reavtivate my Level 15.5 Vorpal Longsword wielding Drow Fighter/Paladin under the free play model... :(
No- I think I've read that you can keep preexisting characters from a paid account and move to the free model with them. But you only have 2 character slots (unless you buy more), so there is that. Also it remains to be seen how many of the adventures are playable on the the free model without buying access.
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So all of this basically means that I'll be unable to reavtivate my Level 15.5 Vorpal Longsword wielding Drow Fighter/Paladin under the free play model... :(No- I think I've read that you can keep preexisting characters from a paid account and move to the free model with them. But you only have 2 character slots (unless you buy more), so there is that. Also it remains to be seen how many of the adventures are playable on the the free model without buying access.
Prior Subscribers get 4 slots instead of 2, But can not choose races or classes that require a fee, except I think Drow since you get that anyway from playing the game and getting favor points *Unsure of that*. But you can not pick a Monk, Favored Soul or warforged for one of those 4 slots.
Edit: Things may change before release.
Gorignak fighter 8 elven
Okay, this made me smile. But an elf? Seriously it's too bad they don't let you play stone archons. Stone archon barbarian. That would be perfect.
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I was going to try to play this, but after dowloading the client and updating, the website won't let me make an account.
After typing in a name for the forum I get a message that says my session has expired.
Is this happening to anyone else?
The game directed me through a different screen today and I was able to create an account.
Anyone else playing yet?
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Wayfinder, PaizoCon Founder
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I loaded and played over the Labor Day weekend. I could not get the 3rd party downloader to work, so I just went with Turbine's incremental installer, and it worked fine.
I was quite impressed with the new entry adventures on an island. I could solo play, and the only bothersome aspect was all the chatting going on in the General tab...are people REALLY that stupid???
As a prior player of the original DDO game, I noticed many of the new dungeons were just rehashes of older dungeons...just new story/goals. That was fine. The loot you get from these initial adventures was actually pretty darned cool. I played until 2 am the first night...I haven't done that for a game in a long time.
Then I got to Stormreach.....and all the original adventures and missions, and dungeons came back. So, yes, I see stuff I've done before. BUT, if I can play for free, and IF I can do so by playing solo, or at least without a total dependency on forming a party with jerk strangers to advance, then I'll be OK with this game.
BTW, I'm Develon Prowesson, Paladin Lvl 2, on Argonesson.
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I read the site notes.
Free Play you get access to 2 characters.
You have access to Stormreach and it's environs (whatever that means)
Warforged and Drow are paid contents
Monks are paid content.
and favored souls are paid content also.
OK let's get a Paizo Guild going, I'll be having my kids create accounts also, and I can play on 3 comps right now.
I played for 2 years, then quit because I had to trim the fat, and City of Heroes beat out DDO for my keeper. But since I can play for free now...well...AWESOME!
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This is awesome news. I still have my DDO game tucked around in my case of games. I was dreading having to sign up for a subscription, but was curious to give it a try again. The idea that I can play it for free is great! I've just gotten into Eberron with 4e so the game means a fair bit more to me now too. This should be fun.
Don't get too excited about the Eberron Aspect, the only really eberron feel in the game is warforged...no shifters, no psionics, no Kalashtar, no changelings, no artificers...
let's put Favored Soul in instead of Artificer...what?
Favored Soul before druid also...Turbine is weird...
But it'll take a while to hit level 10 on two characters, so enjoy it to level 10.
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Actually it was a poor attempt at a joke. I do find the way they handle levels andsuch a little wonky though. Certainly not NWN.Did they change the rules to 4e? About the only way I'd play LoL..."Its a trap..... get an axe."Yep, they are trying to trick you into playing 4E.
agreed, it was a patch to ultra fast levelling...I remember in early beta when they didn't have it.
I have characters on Argo, Sarlona, Thelanis and Khyber. There is a "Paizo roamers of the Flanaess" guild on Sarlona, but Argonessen is my home (though my highest character is only 4th).
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RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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I have just founded the 'Pathfinder Society' guild on Thelanis. All Paizonians welcome! Most of us are still level 1, though we have a level 3 fighter and no arcane casters at the moment.
Also, it's worth noting that you can become a "Premium Account" by buying ANY of the Turbine point bundles. The cheapest one gives you 400 Turbine points and only costs $6.95. A Premium Account means you get 4 character slots instead of 2 (on every server) and you can use the 400 points to buy yourself stuff (pretty much whatever you want). Plus, the point bundle is a one-time purchase, so that $6.95 is it. Not $6.95/month. One of the things you can spend your 400 points on is a "Copper Sigil" that lets one character of your choice go up to level 8 (normally, the max is 4). I think it only costs 150 points, so you could get 3 characters up to 8 if you wanted. Not sure how many points the next level tier is. You can also earn additional points in-game by completing various quests and earning 'Favor' from certain patrons.
My character, the guild leader, is Avira. Level 1 elf rogue. :)
Woot, this means I can use my warforged wizard. :D