Live Update #14: October 19. 2005

[Debillus]

*** Headlines ***

- Explore a haunted house and face frightening fiends as Halloween comes to Norrath!
- All male player races now get to go shirtless!
- Level 50 crafted armor gets improved stats!


*** Halloween Haunts Norrath ***

- Jeepers creepers! Mystery and mischief are afoot as the holiday approaches!
- Pumpkin patches have sprouted up throughout Qeynos and Freeport. Use them to decorate your neighborhood!
- Black cats wander the cities. Don't let them cross your path!
- Another crew of Gigglegibber goblins can be found in Freeport and Qeynos. They'll send you on a trick-or-treat game that you can play with local residents. Watch out for those tricks!
- There are rumors of a haunted house in each city. Talk to the Gigglegibber Scalper in North Qeynos or West Freeport to find out more. Players of all levels can get in on the fun!
- Ponchy Shorttoe of Windstalker Village in Antonica needs help with a baffling and mysterious problem. It seems the scarecrows have gotten riled up!
- What would Halloween be without masks? Disguise yourself as a creepy critter or as your favorite monarch!


*** Desert of Flames ***

- Some of the Fabled weapons originating in the Ro region have been given new appearances.
- Certain epic encounters that previously conned orange to level 60 players will now con yellow.
- Common NPCs that were doing arcane damage with their auto-attacks should now be doing physical damage. This primarily affects the population of the Living Tombs, the Sinking Sands, and the Silent City, but other creatures throughout the world have been altered where appropriate.
- Defeating any named in the single group version of Poets Palace will start an 18-hour reuse timer. Scales should drop at a rate appropriate for the reuse timer.
- In Court of Truth: Riddle of the Sphinx, Altairenanhk the Riddler will now announce who has been chosen to answer his riddle.
- Groups entering the Blades Arena should now get their own instances.
- Naga in the Pillars of Flame are now on the Aravu Naga faction.
- Completing the Scepter of Rahotep heritage quest will now count toward the total needed to earn the Treasure Hunter, Lore Seeker, and Relic Keeper titles.
- Urzyd the Undying will now receive assistance when attacked.
- The Scepter of Rahotep has been made slightly more powerful.
- The Scepter of Rahotep can now be mounted and placed in your home.


*** The Splitpaw Saga ***

- Skoam Anvilpaw no longer hits quite as hard.


*** Gameplay ***

- Deaths due to environmental conditions (e.g. lava, drowning, falling) should no longer leave behind a spirit shard. You will auto-absorb the shard but will still accrue debt and item damage.
- The health pool of heroic 3-up-arrow (^^^) NPCs has been reduced.
- The experience awarded for defeating NPCs with one or more up arrows has been increased. When fighting heroic encounters, this should make it more rewarding to defeat smaller groups of tougher opponents (such as a single 3-up, two 2-ups, or three 3-ups) instead of large groups of weaker enemies.
- Auto-attack is now turned off when the implied target dies. This allows you to keep a group-mate targeted without the hassle of turning off auto-attack at the end of each fight.
- Using a ranged attack will now automatically turn on ranged auto-attack.
- Invisibility and Stealth abilities will now automatically turn off ranged and melee auto-attack.
- Attempting to purchase a Lore item when you already have one will now provide a clearer error message.
- Attempting to collect a Lore item from your house when you already have one will now provide a clearer error message.


*** Quests ***

- Adventurers over level 56 who are on the prismatic quests are now able to enter Lord Nagafen’s lair.
- Licha in Antonica now gives the proper reward for her first quest.
- There is no longer a reuse timer on the trial room where Trainer Grozmag sends you during the "Training Is a Shield" quest.
- Franny for the Hierophants Crook heritage quest will now update all group members that are on the same stage when she dies instead of just the person talking to her.
- Rinis, Shelmay, and Wensa for the Short Sword of the Ykesha heritage quest will now update all group members that are on the same stage when they gate out instead of just the person talking to her.
- Goblins on the Isle of Refuge will once again attack mages destroying their crates.


*** Zones and Population ***

- The portal to the Obelisk of Lost Souls in the Feerrott is now open to all who dare enter. The quest that previously granted access now provides a different reward instead.
- The wasps guarding the entrance to the Drafling Tower in Rivervale have grown weaker, allowing easier access to the wonders that await within.
- Dervish go-betweens in the Commonlands should now be a bit easier to defeat.


*** Epic Encounters ***

- The auto-attack, spell, and combat art damage of all x2, x3, and x4 epic encounters has been reduced.


*** Items ***

- Crafted Ebon armor is now black.
- Crafted Cobalt armor is now blue.
- Many pieces of armor that recently became brightly colored have been toned down to more appropriate levels.
- The Blood Drenched Gi no longer has a No Zone flag.
- Tome of the Xenophobe has been renamed “Tome of the Suspicious."
- Second Editions of several books from the Enchanted Lands are now available through Sages Indis Surion and Navarius Orvalis if you have previously completed the old tome version of those quests.


*** Spells and Combat Arts ***

- Casting is now interrupted if the target dies while you’re casting.
- Maintained spells that target a group or raid member will now drop if either the caster or the target leaves the group.
- Summoned pets now retain their name, level, and current health and power when zoning.
- Charm spells cannot be maintained while crossing zones.
- Temporary pets (such as aqueous stalkers) should no longer become stuck if their master zones while they are active.- Sprint now only consumes power while you're moving.
- Spirit of the Wolf no longer greys out.
- Scrolls for spells and arts that grow with the caster will no longer display a white name for classes that can't use the ability.
- Froglok racial traditions that are permanent will no longer appear in the hotkey bar.
- Charmed aquatic creatures will now break charm if their owner leaves the water.
- Group wards (e.g. Umbral Ritual) should now become more potent as they are upgraded by quality tier.
- All Priest emergency death-prevention spell lines now have a 100% chance to prevent death. Upgrades will increase the amount healed. This affects:
- Templar: Salvation
- Inquisitor: Redemption
- Warden: Nature's Reprieve
- Warden: Tunare's Watch
- Fury: Feral Tenacity
- Mystic: Eidolic Savior
- Defiler: Eerie Avenger
- All Druid, Warden, and Fury specialty regeneration spell lines now regenerate as much health per tick as a Cleric reactive heal. The number of ticks granted by the spell was reduced by 1, but the overall amount healed is much greater:
- Druid: Regrowth
- Warden: Blessing of the Grove
- Fury: Fleshweave
- All Druid group specialty regeneration spell lines now regenerate as much health per tick as a Cleric group reactive heal. The total amount of ticks granted by the spell was reduced by 1, but the overall amount healed is much greater. The range of the spell effect was increased to 25 meters to match that of other group specialty heals.
- Druid: Winds of Renewal
- Warden: Blessing of the Earth
- Fury: Ram's Growth
- Druid and Warden Arch Healing spell lines tick 2 less times, but the amount healed per tick was increased. The initial amount of the heal was also increased.
- Druid: Effloresce
- Warden: Nature's Embrace
- Druid and Warden Group Heal spell lines have an increased tick amount:
- Druid: Sylvan Wind
- Warden: Healing Breeze
- The following area-of-effect damage spells now correctly use the same resistance rates as other AoE spell lines:
- Bard: Alin's Keening Lamentation
- Coercer: Simple Minds
- Defiler: Aphotic Touch
- Dirge: Dissonant Rhythm
- Fury: Starburst, Bristlepelt AE proc effect
- Inquisitor: Litany of Agony
- Mage: Storm of Lightning
- Mystic: Anger of the Ancients
- Necromancer: Blight, Breath of the Unearthed
- Sorcerer: Conflagration
- Templar: Beams of Faith
- Warden: Winds of Frost
- Warlock: Negative Absolution, Dark Siphoning, Devastation
- Wizard: Lightning Flash, Pyre, Chilling Wind

Bard changes:
- Selo's no longer expires and can be toggled off.

Bruiser changes:
- Break Through now shows a maintained icon.

Coercer changes:
- Smirking Demeanor and its upgrades should now have an orange icon background.
- Mind Splice now has a better chance to land on the target.
- Terrible Awe no longer triggers the area effect damage Heroic Opportunity.
- Power of Suggestion no longer increases the group's Agility and Intelligence. These bonuses were moved to a more appropriate spell line.
- Signet of Insight now increases the group's Agility and Intelligence. It increases these stats by a greater amount than the Power of Suggestion line had.

Conjurer changes:
- Flaming Agony now has a better chance to land on the target.
- Stoneskin will now scale appropriately as the caster levels.

Defiler changes:
- Mail of Souls correctly cures Piercing effects instead of Mental effects.
- Abominus will no longer cause falling damage when players are under water.

Dirge changes:
- Scream of Death now has the correct stealth hit bonus.

Enchanter changes:
- Upgrades to Mind Blast can now be crafted and obtained as drops.

Fighter changes:
- Offense is a new offensive stance granted at level 6.
- Goading Gesture had its power cost reduced.

Guardian changes:
- Desperate Offensive is a new offensive stance granted at level 22.

Illusionist changes:
- Cerebral Tempest is now properly granted at level 36.

Inquisitor changes:
- Cruel Invocation now has a reuse timer of 3 seconds instead of 25.

Monk changes:
- Will of the Sky now correctly dispels noxious effects.
- Jolting Hands no longer has a duration. It will still cancel after 8 triggers have been reached.

Mystic changes:
- Water Spirit will no longer cause falling damage when players are under water.

Paladin changes:
- Courageous Wrath is a new offensive stance granted at level 22.
- Courageous Wrath, Implacable Wrath, and Unyielding Wrath are now classified as Combat Arts and provide a Strength bonus.
- Redemption can now be canceled by the recipient of the spell.

Predator changes:
- The description for Hunt should now correctly refer to See Invisible.

Priest changes:
- Bounty of the Virtuous now has a recast time of 5 seconds. The power gain has been increased slightly to better match its power cost.

Ranger changes:
- The icon for Dance of Leaves now matches the rest of the spell line.

Rogue changes:
- Gouge now has an improved Parry debuff.
- The description for Snoop should now correctly refer to See Stealth.

Scout changes:
- Pathfinding no longer expires and can be toggled off.

Shadowknight changes:
- Dark Sword is a new offensive stance granted at level 22.
- Dark Sword, Grim Sword, and Plague Sword are now classified as Combat Arts.

Shaman changes:
- Breath of Spirits had its recast timer lowered to 7.5 seconds instead of 9.

Sorcerer changes:
- Iceflame is no longer unresistable.

Summoner changes:
- The Dust Blast spell line now deals Magic instead of Crushing damage.
- Swarm of Bats now has a better chance to land on the target.

Swashbuckler changes:
- Playful Swipe now has a more potent DPS debuff
- Frigid Throw scrolls and recipes now have the correct name instead of Frigid Blast.

Troubador changes:
- Quiron's Joyous Celebration had its casting icon changed to not confuse it with other group songs.

Warden changes:
- Nature's Touch and Equinox now heal a percentage of health rather than a raw amount.
- Nature's Ally should now scale with level like other swarm pets.

Warlock changes:
- Invite Void had its health cost slightly increased to match the price that other mages must pay to restore power.
- Dark Pact now grants a slightly smaller casting skill bonus.
- Nil Absolution now uses the same Heroic Opportunity advancement as the previous spells in the line.

Wizard changes:
- Augmentation is now properly granted at level 49.
- Pulsing Flash scrolls and recipes now have correct name instead of Scorching Pulse.


*** Tradeskills ***

- Level 50+ crafted armor now has improved mitigation, stat bonuses, and resists. This applies to both Handcrafted and Legendary varieties.
- Level 50+ crafted non-imbued shields have been improved.
- All level 40 and 50+ reaction arts should now have the proper prose description.
- Recipes for the spell Fiery Pulse have been changed to Shocking Flash.
- The recipes for the following abilities have been removed, as the spells no longer upgrade: Watery Spirit, Watery Respite, Ferocity of the Eel, Swill, Abominus, Untamed Shroud, and Wind Walk.
- The Wizard spell Benumb should now be found in the volume 24 Sage books instead of the level 30 books.
- The recipe Essence of Silent Fist has been changed to Essence of Silent Palm to match the name of the combat art it upgrades.
- The names of imbued level 50+ shields now indicate that they are imbued.
- Apothecary Brilliant Cut Glass should now use the correct level fuel for the recipe. It now requires more fuel than the Jeweler version, and the Jeweler version now requires less fuel.
- Scraps should now have a sell-back value.
- Isonoid Loam should now have a sell-back value.
- The recipe for Greater Smite should now produce an Apprentice IV scroll at the pristine state.
- Invisibility recipes have been removed from the level 18 Scholar essentials/advanced recipe books.
- Poisonous Veil should now be included in the level 21 Sage essentials/advanced recipe books.
- Admonishing Smite should now be a level 10 Scholar recipe to reflect the level at which the ability is gained.
- The name and level of all indium thrown weapons should reflect that they are base level 50.
- The Apprentice IV spell scroll for Noxious Blast should have the correct name.
- The recipe for the spell Cold Flame should now have the correct name.
- The recipe for the spell Unflinching Will should now have the correct name.
- Indium throwing axes should now have a value to merchants.
- The recipe for Mind Jolt has been removed from level 17 books as it is already in the level 15 books.
- The recipes for Taunting Stance should now refer to Fire Stance.
- Pristine Tin Sconces now have a rent status reduction.
- The level and difficulty of the recipe for Cobalt Great Spear should now be set properly.
- There are now Weaponsmith recipes at levels 20, 30, 40. and 50 for leather hilts that use their own skills and reactions instead of tailoring reactions and skills.
- The recipe for Breaded Flounder has been set to level 6.
- The recipe for Verdue has been changed to 16 to match the new level for the spell.


*** Art ***

- All male player characters are now shirtless when no chest armor is worn. Let the flexing commence!
- The goo model has been optimized, which should help framerates in areas that contain a lot of this creature type (the Forest Ruins, the Peat Bog, etc.).


*** Commands, Controls, and User Interface ***

- The main chat window for new characters now has two tabs by default: “Main Chat� and “Combat.� Combat and Spell text is sent to the Combat tab. Note: Existing characters that have never changed their chat options will also receive this update.
- Pressing the Esc key while typing text in the chat window will now clear the text and cause the chat window to lose focus. Clicking the mouse outside the chat window will change focus while retaining text that has been typed.
- There is now an option to auto-switch chat types: Options -> User Interface -> Chat Window -> Auto-switch chat types. If checked, the default chat type will change whenever you use something other than the current default. For example, if the default chat type is set to /say and you type something using /gsay, the default chat type will then be changed to /gsay. Note: This option defaults to unchecked (off) for existing characters and checked (on) for new characters.
- The default size of the zone selection window is larger, and the scroll bar should work properly.
- Opening the market search window while being a bit distant from the broker will no longer cause the window to close.
- The Guild Bank will now correctly record the number of items deposited if you add to an existing stack of items.
- The revive window can now be resized horizontally.
- The default style of some user interface windows was changed. Newly created characters will see these changes automatically; existing characters would need to delete their <server>_<char>_eq2ui_settings.ini file to see them.
- There is now a border around both the Maintained and Spell Effects windows when they are moused over. This should make it easier to move and resize them.
- The Maintained, Spell Effects, and Group windows can now be clicked through to interact with targets behind them.
- Additional user interface windows were updated to use the new backdrop and style.


*** UI Files Updated ***

images\commonelements.dds
eq2ui_commonelements.xml
eq2ui_community.xml
eq2ui_inventory_inventory.xml
eq2ui_journals.xml
eq2ui_journals_active.xml
eq2ui_mainhud.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_advancementbutton.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_breath.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_casting.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_clock.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_compass.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_death.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_effects.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_experience.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_groupmembers.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_help.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_heroic.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_hotkey.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_impliedtarget.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_inspectplayer.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_junctionchoice.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_knowledge.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_knowledgesort.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_lotto.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_mail.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_maintained.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_map.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_onscreenmessage.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_openedmail.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_pet.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_player.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_quantityselector.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_raid.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_restarttrialbutton.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_shutdown.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_skills.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_socials.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_society.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_startbutton.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_startmenu.xml
eq2ui_mainhud_target.xml
eq2ui_tradeskill.xml
eq2ui_newcharscene.xml
eq2ui_options.xml
eq2ui_playerhousing.xml
eq2ui_popup.xml
eq2ui_popup_bugreport.xml
eq2ui_popup_claim.xml
eq2ui_popup_feedback.xml
eq2ui_popup_groupoptions.xml
eq2ui_popup_rewardpack.xml
eq2ui_popup_typoreport.xml
eq2ui_popup_zoneteleporter.xml
eq2ui_proxyactor.xml
eq2ui_windowelements.xml

-The EverQuest II Team

[Gninja]

- There is no longer a reuse timer on the trial room where Trainer Grozmag sends you during the "Training Is a Shield" quest.

- Rinis, Shelmay, and Wensa for the Short Sword of the Ykesha heritage quest will now update all group members that are on the same stage when they gate out instead of just the person talking to her.

OooOOooo