Early this morning, the “Malicious Threat” prelude event was activated on all EQ2 live (non-TLE) servers. This event will undoubtedly tie current events into this fall’s upcoming expansion, while giving some hints of what we can expect later this year. The prelude event was tested on the Test server and is now live until September 16, 2015.

Good players can start the “Malice in the Glade” quest in Greater Faydark while Evil players should start the “Malice in the Woods” version in Darklight Wood. Both quests start in Greater Faydark. These quest writeups are by Sigrdrifa. When the quest is completed, you may continue defeating Primordial Malice mobs to get arcane Malice baubles which are a currency to buy special House and Appearance items. Niami Denmother of EQ2Traders has posted a Guide to the event and screenshots of all the in-game items which may be purchased.

From the EQ2 Forums:

Will you confront malice in Norrath?

The mage house of Kelethin’s House of Falling Stars and Neriak’s Disciples of Innoruuk have both felt something disturbing a nearby location. They are looking for adventurers willing to investigate and help them uncover a threatening campaign being carried out. Players welcome in Neriak should speak with Virun D’Xyafin in Darklight Wood, while those that are welcome in Kelethin should speak with Miriel Tawnyglade in Greater Faydark.

This in-game event runs until Wednesday, September 16, 2015.

Set your sights on Greater Faydark because the Kelethin City Festival returns from August 1-7! Spend City Tokens on local specialties, generic festival goods, appearance clothing, or food & drink. Make sure all your characters have finished the Kelethin Postage Collection, speak to Kella Swampfoot to assist with festival quests, and achieve 94 seconds or less in the local Aether Race to earn the Bixie Barnstormer title.

There are new vendor items at the festival this month!

WHEN: 12:01am PT on August 1st – 11:59pm PT on August 7th
WHERE: Greater Faydark, Green Knoll, /loc 536, 44, 53
QUESTS: Special Delivery, Special Order Crafting, Special Order Gathering
ACHIEVEMENTS: Delivery Ahoy, Harvesting Hoopla, Kella Caffeinated, Requisition Acclamation
MERCHANT ITEMS: EQ2 Traders | EQ2 Furniture | EQ2 Design Gallery

The EQ2 team are slowly unlocking various creature comforts on the Time-Locked Expansion servers, including a few fluff Marketplace items, while Veteran Rewards and XP/Vitality potions currently remain off-limits. Some of these items were the subject of an in-game poll.

One of the items that got the thumbs up from players were Personal Harvest Depots/Stashes for player housing (Guild Halls remain unavailable, possibly forever). Players were disappointed at the status cost and the very limited number of slots (30) stored by the 1,000 DBC ($10) item. Fortunately, we can expect an improvement to these items.

From Caith on the EQ2 Forums:

We’ll be upping the numbers on the harvest depots in the next hotfix, at the same time as removing the errant status and rent increase on them.

There will also be new depots with the current capacity made available, appropriately priced.

News broke tonight that John Smedley has stepped down from leading Daybreak. This action follows the recent DDoS attacks, as well as his social media outlash and subsequent deletion of accounts. Taking over the helm for Smedley is COO Russell Shanks, who has been with Daybreak since it was 989 Studios.

A Daybreak spokesperson stated that “John Smedley will be taking some time off from the company for the near-term and transitioning to a different role to be determined. Upon finalization of his plans, further communication will be provided.”

Further from MassivelyOP:

Smedley oversaw the company’s transition from Sony-owned Sony Online Entertainment to Columbus Nova-funded Daybreak Game Company earlier this year. He made headlines this summer after he spoke up —forcefully — about his harassment at the hands of Lizard Squad e-thugsresponsible for the bomb threat that diverted his plane nearly a year ago, among other alleged crimes. In apparent retaliation, the hackers assaulted Daybreak’s game servers with multi-day DDoS attacks and offered a $5000 reward for the defacement of Smed’s father’s grave.

Last week, he deleted his Twitter and Reddit accounts, saying he would “miss the interaction with […] players” but wanted to avoid distractions that stopped him from doing what he liked doing: making games.

The monthly Moonlight Enchantments event begins tonight! The grottos open up on the 20th at 12:01am PT and close on the 21st at 11:59pm PT. The time applies directly with no conversion for all servers.

Achievement: Shinies Beneath the Moonlight
Merchant Items: See on EQ2 Furniture | EQ2 Traders Corner | EQ2 Design Gallery

From the EQ2 Forums:

It’s the Gnomeiest time of the year in Norrath (and, yes, Gnomeiest is totally a word) – Tinkerfest has returned once again! Grab your gadgets, wind up your wrenches, and get ready for an EXPLOSIVE good time this summer! Our good friends at Gnomeland Security are ready with new and returning favorite features.

Make sure you try this year’s new quest, We Can Rebuild. Look for Tinker Thermald in the Steamfront Mountains to get started. While you’re questing, returning quests will have new rewards this year, and new items are also available to purchase from Myron, the Tinkerfest Merchant.

Would you rather get your hands greasy as you craft your own holiday-themed wares? Pick up the New Tinkerfest Blueprints 7.0 and put your tradeskilling to good use. There are plenty of widgets to work with.

Check to see your watch is wound, and don’t delay! Tinkerfest festivities will be in Norrath from Friday, July 17th throughMonday, August 3rd.

From EQ2 Forums:

Enjoying the summer is more fun when you have friends (or at least a crafty merc!) by your side. From Thursday, July 2 through Monday, July 6, there’s a Marketplace sale to help with just that. Both Merc Crates and Group XP Potions will be on sale for 40% off!All Access Members will get their additional 10% off the sale price.

And as an added perk for All Access Members, it’s a Bonus XP Weekend! AAs, Tradeskill, and Adventure XP will all be doubled.

Downtime Notice

US EverQuest II Live Servers will be brought offline on Tuesday, June 23, 2015 at 7:00AM PDT* for an update. Estimated downtime is approximately two hours.

EU EverQuest II Live Servers will be brought offline on Tuesday, June 23, 2015 at 7:00AM PDT* for an update. (Approx. 3:00PM London Time on June 23, 2015). Estimated downtime is two hours.

Echoes of Faydwer Fabled (Level 100)

That was fast! After a week on the Beta and Test servers, the Echoes of Faydwer Fabled solo and group dungeons plus a raid zone are patching live tomorrow, providing new content for level 100 players. These new zones also drop this summer’s Ethereal weapons which are on a 30-day rotation as previously mentioned.

Un-Deleting Characters and Items

For the first 15 years of its history, SOE has been known for its exemplary customer service which included the extraordinary safety net of recovering deleted and transmuted items as well as deleted characters (sometimes due to hacked accounts). In the aftermath of recent changes within the company in its transition to Daybreak Games, we’ve seen petition times jump to 3-6 days, and cutbacks on what support events are covered, particularly on deleted characters. It’s our understanding that restoring a hacked account can take several hours of painstaking reconstruction and digging through log files.

With tomorrow’s update, players who mistakenly Delete an Item or Character will now be able to restore them for Daybreak Cash. Player opinion has been rancorous and divided on this issue. On one side, players are castigated for their carelessness with the delete button or use of weak passwords, while others are quick to remind us EverQuest II is not a free game and most pay a monthly subscription, plus Campaigns and/or Expansions and surely there is enough room under that umbrella for this safety net.

A new quest is now available for testing and feedback on the Test server. From Kaitheel on the EQ2 Forums:

Erollisi Marr is ready to join the pantheon of deities to be worshiped on Test!

There has been no public announcement as to when this content is going to go live, but we’ve got some time to get any bugs ironed out.

Speak with Sister Leela Prendyn in New Halas to get started. May the Loving Huntress bless your travels!

Please post any feedback and bugs in this thread.

~ Kaitheel

We’d previously heard last summer that Erollisi Marr would become a new worshippable deity as part of the planned Deity Revamp. Things have gotten shuffled a bit and Kaitheel clarified that today:

Well, we got a little tired of putting off the Erollisi deity line until the revamp. Thankfully, the revamp has not been scrapped, and when it happens, it won’t make this content moot, either!

From the EQ2 Forums:

Pirates are SO in right now! Here’s the Rum Cellar-themed items that have sailed into the harbor with the recent update.

The atmosphere of the Rum Runners Cove Prestige House is perfect location for a relaxing topical getaway or a rowdy hangout for your favorite privateers.

Last summer, EQ2 player Errrorr created a thread championing a new type of player mount — ducks. For forty-three pages, hilarity ensued. However the thread was put to bed by lead animator Tom “ttobey” Tobey in January of this year when it became clear from higher ups that we’d likely never get such a mount. Theories were bandied about that sales of the bunny mounts had not been sufficient to justify their development effort. It may have been felt that these more frivolous and genre-bending mounts just didn’t resonate with players. Personally I stick with flying appearance mounts so I don’t lose the stats of my primary flying mount. Equipping a bunny mount would cost me significant benefits for my character. Further analysis of the timing of events would suggest another possible reason why duck mounts were initially shot down. But either way, fast forward three months and duck mounts are now a reality!

NOTE: Yellow duck mounts will ONLY be available for two weeks (until May 19th, 2015).

From the EQ2 Forums:

What’s quackin’, Norrathians?

It’s been a long time coming, but the moment many of you have been waiting for has FINALLY hatched… duck mounts are now available in the Marketplace!

Today, Daybreak Games unveiled the new redesign of their website, DaybreakGames.com.  Along with the new site design, they also revealed their new logo and the new name for Station Cash: Daybreak Cash.  We are unsure of how long it will be before this gets changed in-game.  Here’s a screenshot of one of the five screens that cycle through on the new homepage.

Update: As part of the celebration for the launch of the new website and logo, EQ2 players can take advantage of the following:

EverQuest II
All Access members are in for a boost this week with Double XP! That includes Double AA, Adventure, and Tradeskill XP for All Access members only, from 12PM PDT April 27th until 12PM PDT May 4th.

Update 2: Daybreak President John Smedley and Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing Laura Naviaux gave an interview to GamesIndustry.biz about the transition as well.

From Calthine on the EQ2 Forums:

April Fools Day marks the Highest of Silly Days for the Bristlebane Day celebration. Three quests are only available on this day (one is new), given by the sphinx Imenand just off the dock in the Enchanted Lands. Test your brain by trying to solve his many riddles and take a gamble at your choice of house pet rewards.

If you’ve been waiting for a Berry-fed Bovich since last year they’ll be available on the Marketplace for 2250SC. The winged version is available for 2950SC. [Editor’s Note: It was available last year for a heart-stopping 5,000SC]

In your travels you may have noticed bunnies all over Norrath. Today, and only today can you collect the silly wabbits and earn four Bunny Achievements! The 500 bunnie achievement was added this year. [Editor’s Note: The rabbits on the level 95+ Isle of Refuge zone are for a different quest.]

Players can also harvest from the Jester’s Superior Gardens on this day, which are found in Enchanted Lands. These gardens give harvests from every holiday event that has crafting, so be sure you have a lot of backpack space to spare! Those wanting to sneak in some mid-year Frostfell crafting can do so as well.

The Highest of Silly Days starts as soon as it’s April 1 in Pacific time, and goes until 11:59pm PDT on April 1st.

We tried to get this posted sooner, but Roshen posted this news last night on the EQ2 Forums:

On April 1st, Berry-Fed Bovochs return to the Marketplace for 2250SC. That’s not all! There’s also a version of this mount with wings…

Winged Berry-Fed Bovoch Matriarch will be available for 2950SC!

Don’t hesitate once these become available in the Marketplace! These are only available for a limited time, and both of these mounts will only be in the Marketplace until 11:59PM Pacific on Monday, April 6, 2015.

Also Roshen dropped a reminder about Duck Mounts which we’ll see in April as well…

From the EQ2 Forums:

Bristlebane Day is a holiday that celebrates mischief of all sorts. Bristlebane Day 2015 starts on Friday, March 27 and runs until 11:59PM Pacific on Thursday, April 9, 2015.

New for Bristlebane Day 2015!

New Quest – Plethora of Patchcraft Parts
New Tradeskill recipe book, “Perfectly Serious Items to Craft VI.”
7 new event items purchasable from “a Bristlebane Day Merchant.”

From  the EQ2 Forums:

Beginning at 10:00AM PDT* on Friday, March 27th, if you redeem a $20 Station Cash Game Card, you will receive 500 Bonus Station Cash.

All $20 Station Cash cards feature artwork from Landmark:

These Landmark game cards are available in select locations of the following U.S. retail stores: GameStop, Target, Walmart, Best Buy, and Toys R Us.

But hurry! The 500 Bonus SC is only available if you redeem the $20 Station Cash Game Cards between 10:00AM PDT on Friday, March 27th, and 11:59PM PDT on Sunday, March 29th.

*PDT is Pacific Daylight Time; U.S. West Coast. Convert to your local time zone here.

Please note: Bonus Station Cash will ONLY be awarded on the redemption of a $20 Landmark card. Other Station Cash cards are not eligible for this promotion.

EverQuest just celebrated its 16th anniversary and for the last few years, that’s meant celebrations not only in EQ but in EverQuest II by way of the Chronoportals event. From the EQ2 Forums:

Portals to the Age of Turmoil have, once again, opened up in Antonica, Enchanted Lands, Thundering Steppes, Steamfont, Lavastorm, Sinking Sands, Feerrott, and Moors of Ykesha. Will you adventure through these portals to investigate them?

The Chronpportals event starts at 12:01AM PDT on Thursday, March 19, and ends at 11:59PM PDT on Thursday, March 26, 2015.

New features for 2015

• New Quest – Hunt the Past

• Seek out Tazstra K’Rzheett in the Commonlands. What does this suspicious character desire?

• Erben and Distun Delki, the Chronoportal merchants, have three new paintings available:
  • Hidden in the Mists
  • Beasts of Cazic-Thule
  • Entering Unrest

For more information about this event, check out some of our fan sites! Zam has a great Chronoportal write up on their site.

From EQ2 ZAM:

Celebrate the original EverQuest’s anniversaries with special in-game events in EverQuest II! Portals to a time ages ago have opened across Norrath. Adventure, intrigue and a flashback to the days of yore await those brave enough to enter the chronoportals!

We missed this one last week but the Chronoportals event, which marks the anniversary of the launch of the original EverQuest, is on Test with some new content! From the EQ2 Forums:

The Chronoportal Phenomenon event is now active on Test!

Portals to the Age of Turmoil have, once again, opened up in Antonica, Enchanted Lands, Thundering Steppes, Steamfont, Lavastorm, Sinking Sands, Feerrott, and Moors of Ykesha. We need you to investigate them. And keep watch for a suspicious character witnessed within the Commonlands near several chronomages there. We know not what he desires.

New features for ’15!

• New Quest – Hunt the Past
• Erben and Distun Delki, the Chronoportal merchants, are selling three new EverQuest Paintings
  • Hidden in the Mists
  • Beasts of Cazic-Thule
  • Entering Unrest

This event content is currently set to run 03/19/2015 at 12:01 AM PDT time until 03/26/2015 at 11:59 PM PDT time on the live servers, with the event merchants remaining until 04/02/2015 at 11:59 PM PDT time.

NOTE: EU servers do not seem to have had the event turned on, possibly due to emergency maintenance on Valor and Splitpaw servers yesterday afternoon.

From the EQ2 Forums:

Celebrate Brewday with both new and familiar holiday themed rewards, crafts, and adventures. Brewday 2015 starts on Thursday, March 5 at 12:01AM Pacific and runs until Monday, March 16, 2015 at 11:59PM Pacific.

New Features for Brewday 2015!

Seven New Merchant Items sold by Balin Copperfoot in Bar of Brell

UPDATE: We’ve received notification from a few players in-game that this issue has been resolved.

And here’s the official announcement as of 11:00am PST:

Hey players! Do you like collecting various types of Norrathian… like Far Seas Ferrin? Well, then you’re in luck because until11:59PM PST on Sunday, March 1, 2015 you’ll earn DOUBLE alternative currency.

Note: This is in addition to the bonuses to alternative currency that All Access members get every day when they play EverQuest 2. That means that All Access members will get double DOUBLE tokens during this promotion.

This is a great opportunity to stock up on [eq2u]Far Seas Ferrin[/eq2u] or any other alternative currency you’ve been collecting in-game. We’re excited to offer this to our players, and we’ll see you in-game this weekend!

There was an update from Holly on twitter about the event on EU servers needing to be extended, but then it turns out EU servers patched this morning, so NEVAH MYND! 😉

EQ2 Senior Designer Kaitheel has posted an update explaining today’s delayed start to the Moonlight Enchantments event:

Unrest was not the only server affected. It turns out that the server maintenance that occurred this week for Butcherblock, Everfrost, Freeport, Nagafen, and Unrest removed all scheduled activations and deactivations.

The affected servers have had the following events rescheduled:
Erollisi Day now concludes on 2/20/15 at 11:59pm Pac.
Moonlight Enchantments began on 2/20/15 at 9:45am and will last through 2/22/15 at 11:59pm Pac.

EQ2 Senior Designer Kaitheel has posted the news that the popular Brewday Festival is now on Test and the developers are seeking testing and feedback:

Brewday Festival is now active on Test!

Make this Brewday Festival a memorable one! Follow the shouts of rowdy patrons located near every player city to the festival’s official brew house, The Bar of Brell. Once inside, grab a stein and celebrate Brewday with the holiday themed rewards, crafts, and adventures, both new and familiar. But don’t let the celebration stop there, the ale keeps flowing throughout the bars and drinking holes of Norrath this Brewday! Otengard Brauer’s Beer Garden in the Butcherblock Mountains seems to have attracted some unwanted patrons, and there’s news of goblins stirring trouble in the Enchanted Lands, too!

New Features for ’15!

• 7 New Merchant Items sold by Balin Copperfoot in Bar of Brell
• New Quest – Bog Mountain’s Eruption
• New Tradeskill recipe book, “Brewday Accoutrements to Craft VI” sold by Balin Copperfoot in the Bar of Brell.

This event content is currently set to run 03/05/2015 at 12:01am PST through 03/16/2015 at 11:59pm PST on the live servers.

Read the whole announcement on the EQ2 Forums!

I’m proud to announce that a fellow player who I have twice met at SOE Live and then had the fortune of spending New Year’s Eve with is embarking on a new adventure in broadcasting with his own EverQuest II-themed weekly show! Oakmiser‘s new channel, which he calls The Norrathian Chronicles, will see 5-15 minute videos covering news, live events, content updates, and tutorials for in-game topics that tend to trip players up.

Oakmiser, who shares the home server of Butcherblock with me and Dethdlr, has been getting advise from myself and Chuina, creator and former co-host of the popular EQN/Landmark show EverCast, and yesterday he posted his first video covering Erollisi Day:

He’s already listed a few of the subjects of his upcoming programs including: Experimenting Guide, Altar of Malice Review, Timed Mission Tutorials, Advanced Solo Tutorials, Housing Guide, and so much more! New Video(s) will post every Friday starting next Friday the 13th! He asks that those interested in his videos like, subscribe, and follow @NorrathianChron on Twitter, NorrathianChronicles on Facebook, and his Youtube channel.

From the EQ2 Forums:

Are you still chasing a few Legends of Norrath loot cards that have evaded your grasp? Or are you missing cards to fill out your collection? Whatever your reasons, you’re in luck! Starting today and running until 11:59PM PST on Monday, February 9, 2015, take UP TO 66% OFF most Legends of Norrath items in the Marketplace!

There are lots of in-game rewards available from Legends of Norrath Booster packs. Appearance items, potions, houses, and furniture are just some of the awesome things you can receive from opening up a card pack! For example, check out the loot card rewards from Drakkinshard here.

To buy these items and more using your Station Cash, just click the SC button in game, or type /marketplace in your chat window.

Which set(s) will YOU pick up some boosters from this weekend?