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10-29-2006, 12:12 PM
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#2 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Conan Properties Interview
- Jan 24, 2006 To mark the launch of the new community portal we invited the guys at Conan Properties to say a few words and explain their plans for Conan! Joakim Zetterberg was kind enough to sit down and answer some questions on the license team, what they do, and why they choose to work with Funcom on Age of Conan. Can you tell us a little about the Conan Properties team and what you do? The creative team consists of Fredrik Malmberg, Head of Licensing and Creative Affairs, and Thommy Wojciechowski, Manager of Creative Affairs. Most of the job is working with all licensees to make sure that everything is of high quality, looks good and is consistent with the character and universe. Why did you decide to bring Conan's world to life in an online game? Hyboria is a vast world which has only partially been explored in REH’s writings and other authors’ pastiche works. There are many gaps in the history, many characters to develop more, and of course a lot of fighting opportunities, which altogether make online gaming a great way to develop these storylines and visualize settings. What attracted you to partnering with Funcom on the project? We had studied the segment carefully and it boiled down to maybe three or four choices. Funcom had a previous experience and we valued this much because it is so different to make a good online game from other games that you play on your console or in LAN. We were also impressed with their creative pitch and that their vision was so close to ours. How do you find it working with so many different and varied partners on the Conan License? It is very interesting and fun to work with a character that has a base as strong as Conan’s. We try to work with the top talent in various fields and once we feel we have a mutual understanding we give them very few restrictions to inspire creative processes. How important do you feel it is that the various license holders are working towards a common representation of Conan? Very important. Different authors and other artists have had different images of Conan over the years. Our goal is to go back to the basics, to how REH portrayed him. I think we’ve succeeded very well in this with all our licensees, with Cary Nord’s and Kurt Busiek’s interpretation of Conan in the Dark Horse comic being our lead star. They have so well captured how we believe Conan really is, and we always point other licensees in that direction. Anything you can tell us about your plans for Conan for the coming years? A lot of things are going to happen over the coming years. There’s of course the Warner Bros. movie planned for a summer 2007 release which will result in a significant rise in consumer products. There are plans for a new line of toys from McFarlane, Dark Horse Comics will continue with their Conan comic as well as with the Chronicles of Conan series. We’re also discussion the possibility of reprinting the other larger classic comic book series, Savage Sword of Conan. Another major license holder, THQ Inc, is working on games and wireless content which is absolutely stunning. In addition, we are now carefully crafting plans for select product categories for a mature audience. |
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10-29-2006, 12:16 PM
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#3 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Lore Updates!
- Feb 24, 2006 Want to find out more about the world of King Conan? We've updated our lore section with four more entries today. You'll find new entries for three of the locations you will get to visit in the game, Old Tarantia in Aquilonia, Broken Leg Glen in Cimmeria and Khemi in Stygia as well as an insight into one of King Conan's allies, Kalanthes. You can find the lore section here for all the details here |
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10-29-2006, 12:20 PM
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#4 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Gameplay Preview #1 Ranged Combat
- Mar 10, 2006 Today we take the first look at how ranged combat will play out in Age of Conan. Want to discover the archer in you? Then this is the feature for you! Ranged combat will operate from a number of different 'stances', each different stance will offer the player a chance to use a different style of ranged attack, from a 'snipe' type shot to blanketing an area with as many arrows as they can fire. Most of the ranged combat stances see the action shift into a kind of first person view. The camera zooms into an over the shoulder or first person view and displays a targeting crosshairs. Here you aim with your weapon, and fire towards advancing opponents much like you might find in a FPS game (but not quite as fast-paced). This serves to try and bring the player "there", into the action, and into the world. The crosshairs changes colour to indicate whether the target is in range or not to give a clear indication of whether you have a good chance to hit your target. This introduces a great combination between actual player skill (targeting and choosing your targets) and the more traditional RPG skill systems. The different classes will have varied skills with ranged weapons so stats, and how you have chosen to advance your skills, will still bear heavily on your chance to hit, and how much damage you might do (and how quickly you can do it!) whilst still needing the player to have their wits about them and actively have their foes targeted! So the good old-fashioned 'ToHit' roll is still present and correct, but there isn't any easy 'lock on target' mode here, if your target is moving (and lets face it anything that might be aware you are trying to poke holes in it with a well placed volley of arrows is going to be trying to move!) you'll have to keep your aim straight and true to keep it in your sights. Therefore ranged users will always have to be paying attention and choosing their targets carefully, picking the right target at the right time, and always having to consider the reaction of their target to being shot at! The best bow skills in the world won't help much if a stray arrow attracts the attention of an entire village of angry Picts you might have been better of avoiding! The system blends in with the rest of the real combat engine so that it hopefully doesn't become a pure 'twitch fest' that you might find in a FPS, it won't be that hectic, but just like its melee counterpart ranged combat will put some of the finesse and skill back in the hand of the players! Overall we really feel this brings a degree of realism to using ranged weapons that is very different to anything that you might see in most fantasy MMOs.   |
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10-29-2006, 12:22 PM
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#5 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Gameplay Preview #2 Class Tree Explained
- Mar 17, 2006 Want to know what classes will be available to play in Age of Conan? Look no further as today sees the first reveal of our playable classes! So how do you develop your character in Age of Conan? The first thing you choose in your character development is your class. Here you can choose from Cimmerians, Aquilonians and Stygians. Cimmerian is Conans race. They are tall, grey-eyed, dark haired and fair skinned. They are typically tall, muscular and fierce. Aquilonians are the "Romans", if you like, and they represent the pinnacle of Hyborian culture. They are darker in skin, but they have a larger variation of skin and hair tones than the Cimmerians. Both the Cimmerians and the Aquilonians can choose from three different class types: Warrior, Priest or Thief archetypes. To become a Mage, you must choose the Stygian race. They can be understood as the Egyptians from the age of the pharaohs. They have the darkest complexion and are the smallest, but they have a rich and mystical culture. The Stygians can not become warriors. You choose the main archetype (warrior, thief, priest or mage) at level five as you reach the city of Tortage in the beginning of the game (after around twenty minutes of play). The class specialisation then happens when you reach level twenty. This happens when you leave the single-player part - and enter the multiplayer universe. You can then choose your class from those available for your archetype! Over the next few weeks we will be exploring the different archetypes in more detail, but for now you can check out the entire listing of available classes! That's not the end of the character development either! In Age of Conan there will be special Prestige classes available for players who join a guild to choose from. These are first available from level five and are in addition to your archetype and class! These prestige classes give the players extra abilities to benefit their guild. Being in a guild is always a key factor in any MMO and in Age of Conan prestige classes provide a deeper and actually meaningful way for players to contribute towards their guild! There are four prestige classes that players can choose from: Lord, Commander, Crafter or Master. Each brings something different to the guild, from the city building and taxation benefits of the Lord, through the team skills of the Commander and the crafting skills of the crafter to the Master's ability to have an NPC follower to do their bidding! There will be more information released on the prestige classes in the weeks to come as well! Guilds will be a very important part of Age of Conan and prestige classes are very much your incentive to join up into a guild! Each prestige class that exists in a guild will give benefits to the guild (on a 'by account' basis to prevent players bolstering their ranks with 'alt' characters! You can have alt characters but only the prestige class of the first to join will benefit your guild) Finally it's worth noting that this structure for character development is slightly different to what we had mentioned in some of the original interviews. We have moved prestige classes earlier into the development and allowed players to select their final class at level twenty instead of later in the game. As we worked on the character development tree and listened to the community feedback through our forums we realised that it might not have been wise to force players to get to level forty or beyond before making final choices that they might find don't suit their play style! Therefore this system allows players to choose their class and prestige class earlier and avoid any disappointments later in the game! That's it for today and keep your eyes out over the coming weeks for more details on the archetypes and Prestige classes! Class Tree |
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10-29-2006, 12:25 PM
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#6 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Gameplay Preview #3 Mage Archetype
- Mar 24, 2006 This week we reveal some more details on the Mage archetype and classes that will be available in Age of Conan. Wondering what exactly a Herald of Xotli is? Then read on! The mage class is based around inflicting damage from range. In their cloth armor, they are unable to withstand much direct conflict. Given the demonic sources from which some of the mages draw their power, the mage classes in Age of Conan will be able to call on dark powers to help them on occasion even when the enemy gets closer! Through the use of spellweaving, mages will be able to create some staggering attacks. Herald of Xotli Some demonologists are either too weak minded or venture too far down the path of demonology to remain untainted. The Heralds are those that bargained with the demon god Xotli and paid the ultimate price, becoming a host to true demonic powers. In battle, the Herald transforms into a demon, preferring to melee opponents and feel the enemy's flesh tear rather than rely on spells, although they retain a fearsome arsenal of spells to call upon as needed. Specialties: melee mage, two handed edged weapons, summon weapons, demon form Demonologist The Demonologist bargains with demons for power, binding them to his will. While able to use certain magic without the aid of demonic powers, the Demonologist is not as studied as other mages, having a need to make blood pacts to reach full potential. Still, the Demonologist is powerful enough to bring demons to this realm and bind them to service. Specialties: fire or electrical Direct Damage, demon pet, short duration buff to increase casting abilities Necromancer The master of unholy magic, the Necromancer animates the dead and corrupts the living. Looking down on the Demonologist for needing to strike bargains for power, the Necromancer needs no such crutch, relying on his own master of death of kill his enemies. Specialties: Cold or Unholy Direct Damage, undead pets, lifetap Lich Where the Necromancer animates the dead, the Lich embraces and joins the dead, if only for a period of time. By fusing with the bones of the dead, the Lich gains impressive physical strength and resilience. In this form the Lich prefers to wade into battle and club enemies to death, although retains access to their full array of spells. Specialties: melee mage, two handed blunt weapons, summon weapons, undead form |
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10-29-2006, 12:27 PM
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#7 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Gameplay Preview #4 Warrior Archetype
- Mar 31, 2006 We continue our look at the available playable classes this week as we explore the options for the warrior archetype in Age of Conan! Want to know the difference between a Guardian and a Halberdier? Read on to find out... Able to wear heavier armor than any other class, the Warrior is able to soak up damage like no other. The heavy armor also allows the warrior to resist knockback attacks more than any other class. Later specialization classes gain a defensive and offensive stance, the warrior is able to decide whether to hunker down when under attack, or go into a battle frenzy and significantly increase damage output while lowering defense. Guardian Encased in the heaviest armor and carrying around a shield, the Guardian focuses on powerful directional attacks that temporarily damage armor and protection, increasing the amount of damage the enemy takes. Specialties: tank, heavy armor (including full plate), shield, one handed edged, directional damage mod Halberdier Encased in the heaviest armor, the Halberdier specializes in pole arms, trusting in evasion to avoid enemy attacks, rather than a shield to block them. Although limited in the amount of damage they can inflict, the Halberdier does focus on inflicting multiple hits in rapid succession in an area of effect. Specialties: tank, heavy armor (including full plate), pole arm, multihit Area of Effect Conqueror With a standard strapped to their back, the Conqueror leads the charge into battle. Wearing heavy armor and using 2-handed weapons, the Conqueror relies upon evasion to avoid enemy attacks. The standard being carrier around provides a boost the Conqueror team, typically increasing damage. In times of need, the Conqueror is able to take the standard and plant it into the ground in a devastating attack. Specialties: tank, heavy armor (not full plate), two handed edged, two handed blunt, banner for one group buff. Liberator While the standards the Conqueror uses typically increase damage, the standards of the Liberator renew and augment the team in other ways. Wearing heavy armor and dual wielding, the Liberator relies upon evasion to avoid enemy attacks. In times of need, the Liberator is able to take the standard and throw it in a devastating attack. Specialties: tank, heavy armor (not full plate), one handed edged, one handed blunt, dual wield, banner for one group buff Zealot Wearing heavy armor and carrying a shield and blunt weapon, the Zealot has a small amount of priestly ability. Able to augment the team with a single aura, the Zealot is the only class not in the priest class that has healing spells. Specialties: tank, heavy armor (not full plate), one handed blunt, aura for one group buff, team heal Dark Templar Wearing heavy armor and carrying a shield and blade, the Dark Templar drains the life from enemies while attacking. Like the Crusader, the Dark Templar is able to augment the team with a single aura. While able to transfer life to the team, the Dark Templar suffers for this, although with life draining abilities this is rarely a problem. However, the Dark Templar is susceptible to soul corruption effects more than most other classes because of powers they traffic with. Specialties: tank, heavy armor (not full plate), one handed edged, aura for one group buff, team life transfer, lifetap |
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10-29-2006, 12:28 PM
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#8 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Gameplay Preview #5 Thief Archetype
- Apr 07, 2006 This week we reveal some of the details behind the Thief Archetype in Age of Conan. So step into the darker corners of Hyboria and learn a little more about the scheming and dangerous world of the thief... Unconventional and devious fighters, characters in the Thief Archetype are those intent on causing maximum harm to their opponents through any means necessary. These classes are not the disciplined soldiers of the warrior archetype, but cunning and often vicious opponents that their enemies would be unfortunate to meet in one of the many dark corners of Hyboria. Capable of dealing great amounts of damage to their victims, they typically wear lighter armor for the sake of mobility and secrecy. Thieves use a variety of weapon combinations based on situation and necessity, dispatching their enemies in a brutally efficient manner. Reaver The Reaver is a rabid combatant, harnessing the anger and heat of battle to unleash a devastating flurry of blows. Trained in the art of using multiple weapons simultaneously, Reavers are less concentrated on powerful single attacks as they are on hitting their opponents many times in quick succession. Mostly unconcerned about their own personal safety, they wear light armor for the sake of mobility and speed. Specialities: One-handed blunt, one-handed edged, dual-wielding, armor debuff, berserking, multi-hit combos and light armor. Barbarian The Barbarian is a muscular combatant, focusing on a combination of pure strength and panther-like agility to overcome their enemies. Specialising in using a two-handed weapons for maximum impact, almost all of the Barbarian's attacks are area-of-effect. Having a mastery of sweeping and wild swings, the Barbarian relishes the opportunity to crush as many opponents as possible in a single blow. Specialities: Two-handed blunt, two-handed edged, stun, evasion debuff, multi-target combos and light armor. Defiler Lurking in the shadows and trained alongside those studying the dark arts of necromancy, the Defiler utilizes more unnatural means to dispatch those he intends to assassinate. Whilst not as deeply enshrouded in magic as the Stygian Mages, Defilers are able to consume some of the essence from the spirits of the fallen. Sacrificing this power in strange and dark rituals, the Defiler can be granted unnatural powers temporarily. Defilers do not use conventional poisons, instead relying on the dark energies flowing through their strikes. Specialities: Dagger, dual-wielding, unholy attacks, draining soul essences to use with special attacks, damage-over-time combos and cloth armor. Lotus Master Typically found with both daggers dripping with lethal poisons, the Lotus Master focuses on fast attacks in order to inflict a quick and painful death. Trained with teachings shrouded in mystery, this assassin utilizes various forms of lotus extract in order to cause harm to his enemies or aid himself and his allies. Although a crafty and resourceful fighter, the Lotus Master prefers to let his poisons disorient and ultimately incapacitate anyone unfortunate enough to be his prey. Specialities: Dagger, dual-wielding, damaging, disorienting, and slowing poisons, restorative elixirs, multi-hit combos and cloth armor. Master Thief The Master Thief is the epitome of a dirty fighter, throwing kicks, elbows, and other cheap shots to disorient his foes. With the goal of gaining every advantage they possibly can in a fight, they are known to use many tactics deemed "unfair" by some. Not a poison user, the Master Thieves rely upon precise, powerful attacks to inflict damage as well as land blows that reduce the fighting abilities of their victims. Specialities: One-handed edged, one-handed blunt, off-hand dagger, damage debuff, snare, blind, damage-over-time and light-armor. Ranger The Ranger is a bow-specialist, preferring to stay out of melee combat and dispatch his foes from afar. Relying on accuracy and precision, Rangers are less concerned with mobility and more with self-preservation and maintaining an element of surprise. Masters with their bows, they are able to provide essential ranged cover for their allies, be it through blanketing areas in arrows or sniping vulnerable targets that may be cowering behind the front lines. Specialities: Bow, high rate-of-fire, volley attacks, sniper attacks, damage-over-time and medium armor. Waylayer The Waylayer is a crossbow-oriented marksman, taking advantage of the higher damage and slower firing rate of his weapon when compared to Rangers. Like the Ranger, Waylayers prefer to stay out of melee combat to maintain a high level of survivability while dispatching enemies from afar. The power of their mighty crossbows has been known to rip right through opponents, plunging their bolts into opponents standing or hiding behind them. Specialities: Crossbow, piercing attacks, knockdown attacks, damage-over-time and medium armor. |
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10-29-2006, 12:30 PM
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#9 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Gameplay Preview #6 Priest Archetype
- Apr 14, 2006 This week's update sees us take a deeper look into the Priest Archetype in Age of Conan. From the devout to the ferocious, these are not just the typical healers you might expect... Priests in Age of Conan are a step beyond the stereotype of a vulnerable healer - they can call forth the power of their deities to smite and expose their enemies whilst protecting and aiding their allies! Whilst the priest is certainly the cornerstone of a good team in that they provide the vital restoration skills required to keep their allies standing in battle, they are so much more than that as well. Priests draw on the strength of their faith and their abilities are derived from the power of their respective deities. Each god provides unique aspects to their followers, from the lethal poisons of the snake god Set to the elemental powers of nature itself harnessed by the Stormcaller. The priests of Hyboria can be broadly split between those that follow the shamanic path and those that dedicate themselves as high priests of a deity. Trusting in their respective deities to preserve their lives priests largely wear light armor, and need to avoid direct melee confrontation wherever possible. Priest of Mitra With powerful healing abilities and dedicated to Mitra, these priests are able to call upon the power of Mitra to throw back those that would confront them, keeping the Priest safe from harm. Only Aquillonian and Cimmerian priests may serve Mitra Specialities: healer, one handed blunt weapons, repulse area of effect ability Scourge of Derketo Another excellent healer, the Scourge is dedicated to the god Derketo, calling on the gods power to bring the woes of fire and brimstone to their enemy. These attacks focus on area-of-effect damage spells Only Aquillonian and Stygian priests may follow Derketo Specialities: healer, two-handed blunt weapons, area of effect damage Scion of Set Dedicated to the god Set, in addition to their excellent healing power the Scion of Set has been blessed by the snake god with the ability to inflict damaging poisons upon their enemies. With the ability to take a lethal snake form the Scion is not a foe to be underestimated. When they are faced with the enemy they prefer to wield their sacrificial and ceremonial daggers Only Stygian priests may worship Set. Specialities: healer, dagger, poison Druid Rather then following one particular deity the Druid is at one with the power of nature. The Druid can call upon swarms of bees and hornets to kill enemies, and has natural healing remedies and abilities to keep their allies standing in battle. Any race may become a druid Specialities: healer, damage over time abilities Bear Shaman This type of shaman has a powerful mystical kinship with bears and is able to call upon and be infused with the strength of a bear, and even become a bear themselves, providing great melee prowess. While still having good restorative abilities, the Bear Shaman prefers to rend and maul the enemy. The Bear Shaman is also the only priest class that is able to wear medium armor. Only Cimmerian priests may become bear Shaman Specialities: healer, two-handed blunt weapons Stormcaller Masterfully in touch with the elements themselves, this shaman can control and call upon the power of weather to hinder and attack their foes, calling down lightning and creating storms. Like their fellow shaman their knowledge of restorative remedies and abilities is not to be underestimated. Only Aquillonian and Stygian priests may be Stormcallers Specialities: healer, electrical damage, summon storms and hurricanes |
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10-29-2006, 12:31 PM
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#10 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Norway
Posts: 679
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Archetype and Class Feedback
- Apr 21, 2006 With all four archetypes now revealed, and much discussion amongst the community, this week we wanted to comment on the great feedback and reveal what we do with all your comments and suggestions! We really appreciate the great discussion that was generated by the series of articles revealing the class structure. There have been a lot of interesting points raised, questions asked, and opinions offered. So what happens with all those thoughts and opinions? This week the design team and Gaute Godager, the Game Director, sat down with the community team to go over all the feedback and brainstorm on the classes again in light of some of the feedback. The great aspect of having such an active community at this stage is that things can still change. We won't always agree with all the feedback, and opinions are subjective, but we are also very happy to listen to good ideas when we hear them! So we sat down and went through all the feedback, decided which we could consider, who had a point, and what we felt we might alter or tweak. It was an interesting debate, raised lots of good points, some gameplay orientated and some on areas where we could be even more loyal to the original world as described by Robert E Howard. To summarise the changes we decided on after a couple of meetings and more then a little debate of your opinions and views, here is what we decided upon: The 'warrior' archetype has been renamed to 'Soldier' The 'thief' archetype has been renamed to 'Rogue' The 'Crusader' class has been renamed to 'Zealot' The Priest of Mitra is available to Aquilonian and Cimmerian races The Scourge of Derketo is available to Stygian and Aquilonian races The Archetype Names We decided to change the archetype names, warrior and rogue, to better define exactly what people can expect from the way those classes will feature in Age of Conan. Our warriors are the military and disciplined types that make up the various armies of Hyboria, so we agreed with the feedback that this should be clearer in the Archetype name. Likewise having the name 'thief' didn't explain fully why the likes of the Barbarian and ranged type character classes were under a thief archetype. The characters in this archetype do all have inherent thief like abilities, but they are also serious combat classes with superb damage capabilities, so upon reflection rogue is a better suited definition The Crusader becoming a Zealot The key aspect of this class is that they draw their dedication from their faith, and we originally chose Crusader for that connection. However when we saw the objections that there would be a better way to suggest that in the name without invoking a very particular religious and historical symbol, and we really liked the Zealot suggestion, so we went with it! ...of Priests and Deities Lastly we considered the debate around the racial restrictions on the Priest classes. There will always be some concessions made to gameplay considerations in a game like this, but that doesn't mean we aren't also willing to listen to those who have a valid point to make about the lore. This was one of those cases where we originally allocated which race had access to which based on trying to balance distribution between the races 'evenly' and allow a little more freedom then the lore might suggest. When we saw the reaction, and the constructive and passionate arguments from the community against this though we gladly went back and took another look and decided that we could align the priest choices much closer to their lore roots and not be out of keeping with out gameplay intentions for the archetype Conclusion Whenever we do changes like this, people like them or dislike them. Few are indifferent about it. This paragraph is put here to really signal that we listen. If you would be so kind as to let that be the main summary of this discussion: we enjoy this dialogue! Not 'oh no, they cut the crusader' - or 'will the soldier have mirror shields? :p '* What we wanted to get across in this week's update is that we hope we can continue this dialogue. So there you have it! Again, huge thanks for all the great feedback and keep it coming! As you can see from the above, it does count, of course we won't always be able to make every change people suggest, but we will always listen to good constructive thoughts on what we reveal, and if they are really good consider changes like these! *you'll have to ask an Anarchy Online player for the inside line if you didn't get that one  |
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