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BlizzCon 2010: Live Raid — Paragon and The Defense of Orgrimmar

22 October 2010 | 1 Comment » | Amatera

Let me say right off the bat that I love this raid format. Just the idea of having no idea what is headed your way must be exhilarating! We won’t be live-blogging this, per se, but we do want to give you a few of the details. iTZKooPA has planned to film it off-screen, so we will ideally have a video of it when he’s able to convert that footage.

For now, I’m just going to paint a good picture for you:

  • The scene opened with Paragon standing in front of Orgrimmar, a fact they only learned at the moment the developers plopped ‘em in there.
  • There were Twilight Drakes filling the sky and some Twilight’s Hammer baddies waiting in the wings, but they wouldn’t be facing those. At least not yet.
  • No, first it was time to revisit Molten Core.
  • The developers spawned four bosses from the instance: Magmadar, Shazzrah, Baron Geddon, and, I believe Lucifron.
  • Unlike last year, all of these bosses had inflated, level-appropriate stats.
  • Living bomb was a major pain for Paragon, and they failed their first three attempts.
  • Paragon wiped out Wave 1 on their final attempt.
  • Wave 2 was from Blackwing Lair and Blackrock Spire: Chromaggus, The Beast, Drakkisath, and Broodlord Lashlayer.
  • Paragon wiped out Wave 2 on their first attempt.
  • Wave 3 consists of new foes, juiced up versions of Cataclysm Heroic Dungeon bosses: Rom’Ogg Bonecrusher,  Forgemaster Throngus, Ozruk, Commander Ulthok.
  • From out of nowhere appeared a Goblin Barbecue (new feast?).
  • Paragon failed Wave 3, but managed to down Rom’Ogg Bonecrusher.
  • Wave 4 was: Warchief Rend Blackhand, Firemaw, Vaelion the Corrupt, and Pheralion.
  • This fight actually went well, but to no avail, for a booming voice then echoed through the canyons of Durotar…
  • Deathwing appeared and melted everyone’s faces, adding “the hour of Twilight falls!”
  • He then spewed fire over the city and Orgimmar went down in flames.

And that’s it! No Hogger this year, but a bangin’ ending nonetheless!

BlizzCon 2010: Diablo III Demon Hunter and PvP Pages Go Live

22 October 2010 | No Comments » | Amatera

Blizzard proves that you can create sexy female video game heroines who actually wear a full suit of armor.

Just minutes after the announcements were made at the Opening Ceremony, Blizzard has already posted pages for both the new Demon Hunter class and PvP Arena mode. Undoubtedly, more specifics are being revealed at the various Diablo III panels throughout the convention, but there is plenty of information to be found on the official website, as well.

I’ve got to admit that the more I hear about the Demon Hunter, the more I’m convinced that it is the class I really want to play. Here are five very good reasons why:

  • Fan Of Knives — As a fan of World of Warcraft‘s Rogue class, I am infinitely pleased to see this skill being adapated for use by the Demon Hunter, and it works even better here since you’ll constantly be facing hordes of enemies at once in true Diablo fashion.
  • Molten Arrow — Not only does it pack an extra, flame-fueled punch to the targeted enemy, it leaves a Wall of Fire-style trail behind it to catch any other foes that may wander into you line of sight.
  • Grenades — Toss a bundle of pineapples into a large crowd and watch stuff go ka-boom. What more could you ask for?
  • Bola — Grenades not your style? Send a gun-powder-packed ensnaring device towards your enemies and turn them into living bombs. When they explode, they’ll do splash damage to any other bad guys near them.
  • Entangling Shot — Tether multiple enemies together, temporarily stunning them and slowing them down. Chain gangs were never so much fun!

Short videos of each spell can be found at the website linked above, as well as the full trailer shown during the Opening Ceremony.

As for PvP? I’m not yet convinced it’ll be anything more than a fun distraction. The clicky nature of Diablo’s combat never really seemed to lend itself to high-level arena play, but it’s a nice gesture, nonetheless. Here are a few of the key features:

  • Arenas are not Random — they will be carefully constructed with differing terrain and cover.
  • Use the Character of Your Choice — These are not pre-mades, they are characters you have built up online or in single-player.
  • Pure Rewards — You won’t really be earning new armor and equipment in PvP. Instead, you’ll get bragging rights in the form of rankings and points that will accumulate towards vanity rewards like titles and achievements.
  • Future Game Types — Blizzard is still exploring the possibility of future game types outside of ranked matches, such as 1-on-1 duels.

Don’t forget to check out our Live Blog of the Diablo III Gameplay panel for more details!

BlizzCon 2010: Lore Hound Live-Bloggin’

22 October 2010 | 1 Comment » | Amatera

Lore Hound live-blogging in action!

Just a bit of a Public Service Announcement, pups! Lore Hound will be live-blogging as much of BlizzCon 2010 as it possibly can, something that we sadly couldn’t do last year on “the-site-that-shall-not-be-named.” Those in attendance or with live streams (meaning iTZKooPA, Mordil, Juggynaut, or Hearthbourne) will be using Cover-It-Live to accomplish this task.

But don’t worry, you won’t have to go anywhere else to see the content. It’ll be right here on the main page, with a separate post for each panel that our intrepid reporters manage to get to (all the big stuff, at least). The great thing about C-I-L is that it keeps archives of the live-blogging, so even if you come in late, or after a panel is completely over, you can still catch up.

This being our first time to the rodeo, we’d appreciate your patience with any technical mishaps we might encounter. Broken laptops, inability to access wi-fi, hiccups with the software, or wardrobe malfunctions are all potential troubles when you’re trying to get something like this together. But we do hope you enjoy it, and stay tuned!

Coverage begins with the Opening Ceremony, this morning at 11:00 AM PDT.

BlizzCon 2010: Swag Bag Pictures

22 October 2010 | 4 Comments » | Amatera

BlizzCon swag is always a big deal, sometimes resold on the internet for more than the price of a ticket itselfi! TZKooPA managed to score his bag of junk early, and we’ve got some exclusive high-resolution pictures of its various contents. There’s a full gallery with close-ups of individual items after the jump, but here’s the selection in its entirety:

Not attending the event myself, I couldn’t tell you precisely what each item is, but most of it seems to speak for itself (such as the various coupons and notices). The marquee swag this year seems to be the exclusive 2010 Authenticator, a StarCraft II Trial Edition (though who at the con doesn’t own it already?), and the Dethling, which appears to be a Deathwing-themed statuette (pictures in the gallery). And, of course, who can forget the Murloc Marine Battle.net portrait and Deathy in-game pet? Continue Reading

PAX Prime ’10: Marvel Super Hero Squad Online Developer Interview

21 October 2010 | No Comments » | Amatera

Who doesn’t like Super Heroes or Squads? What if you could have both, but online at the same time?! Stars would collapse, worlds would shatter, and the universe would fold up into its pre-Big Bang state. While I’m sure the folks over at The Amazing Society would love that sort of reception for their upcoming MMO, Marvel Super Hero Squad Online, I imagine they’d also prefer to keep their customers around, as well. And let me tell you, it’s hard selling material goods to non-corporeal beings!

Still, they were gracious enough to let us do a little bit of the legwork in promoting their game by taking some time out of their busy convention schedule to talk with iTZKooPA. Due to unfortunate audio issues, we couldn’t include footage of the housing system (in which your collection of Super Heroes can be made to interact with each other like in creative ways, like irradiated-spider-bitten Sims) or the PvP Card Battle mode (though we will in another, forthcoming video), but Vice President and Studio Manager Jason Rober still spilled the beans on some exciting new characters and game features.

Don’t be fooled by the cutesy look, there’s some seriously cool stuff going on here!

DDO Update 7 Goes Live

20 October 2010 | No Comments » | Amatera

If there’s one thing you can say about Turbine, it’s that they’re not content to rest on their laurels. Always active, always producing, and the latest fruits of their labor have borne as Update 7: Half-Bloods. Entailed by its name, one of the biggest aspects of this patch is the introduction of two new playable races — both Half-Orcs and Half-Elves — that should add an extra degree of complexity to building characters.

But, in the timeless words of late-night pitchmen everywhere, that’s not all! Adding to an area of the game that still desperately needs work, comes the introduction of a brand new raid called The Chronoscope:

In this deadly new premium Raid, you can flip the hourglass and travel back in time to face an army of Devils in the heart of Stormreach, dodging through the stalls of the Marketplace and the maze of time itself to solve a mystery for the ages. When the Devil army first invaded the Marketplace, the artist Natt Gann was terribly wounded and disappeared. Now his family wants to know what happened and is sending you to the past to find out. This level 4 Raid teams you with two researchers in time’s mysteries, and they have secrets of their own. You have to travel back in time to find that the past is just like the present, only with an army of Devils, an exploding market tent, and a deadly battle to decide the future! You’ll need all your brains and all your brawn to handle adventure so intense that even time can’t contain it! Get The Chronoscope raid with the Devil’s Assault adventure pack which now includes the improved gameplay and support for epic mode!

All of the above is going to cost you a chunk of Turbine Points through the in-game store, but that doesn’t mean they forgot about free content, either. Along with Endless Night, a new Halloween-themed event, comes a completely gratis Adventure Pack designed for players around Level 12:

Follow a mystery as straight as a snake’s tail when Droaam, the kingdom of monsters, sends a sexy, snaky ambassador to Stormreach. This new monster is a beauty, but could she really be a beast? The Coin Lords call upon you to find out what the kingdom of monsters want, what the entrancing, enticing, petrifying Medusa is up to, and just what that army of monsters is hanging around Stormreach for! Hunt for answers in the thronging crowds of Lordsmarch Plaza, a new public area brought to you in this free level 12 adventure pack. The world of DDO is getting bigger, but does that bring threat or treasure to the lords of Stormreach? Leap into a new world of danger and excitement and grab the snake by its tail if you’re brave enough to find out! Adventure comes with hissing hair and a stony stare and wealth and power for those who dare discover her secrets!

For further info, check out our video preview of all the new stuff from Update 7 at Pax Prime ’10.

Cataclysm Raid Analysis — Omnitron Defense System

20 October 2010 | No Comments » | Amatera

Raid testing has finally begun in the beta, and that means that we get our first good look at end game content! Since no one at Lore Hound has ever received an invite (and, dare I say, we no longer hold our breath for one), we can’t bring you footage of this content ourselves. Even if we did, you’d probably be watching a slapped-together PUG group flailing against brand new bosses over and over again until all of our key tanks and healers decided it was time to “let their cat play with the router cable.”

And that’s why we let the experts do it! Thus far, seven bosses have been tested in a variety of instances, and videos of the first few encounters are starting to hit the Youtubes. We’ll begin with footage of the Omnitron Defense System, a multi-target boss found in Blackwing Descent. Analysis begins after the jump.

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Cataclysm: The Intro

17 October 2010 | 18 Comments » | Amatera

Deathwing does to Stormwind what Rick James would do to your couch.

Speaks for itself, huh?

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