From EverQuest2.com:

In our last in-game poll, we asked players what they thought of us selling health, power, and self-rez potions for solo, group, and raid players.

The results are in! Overall, for all items, there was an average of 65% support for the solo versions in all three categories (and, in fact, there was only a minor variance in the percentages for each item). Group and Raid items averaged at 55%.

As we saw with the EQ2X (Freeport) server, where we sold similar items, these types of items help the solo player have fun while adventuring alone. We also added limitations to these items so they will not affect group or raid players.

Starting on Friday, May 18, 2012, you will see the solo health, power, and self-rez items for sale in the marketplace! These items will be found in the Consumable category, under Combat Skills.

UPDATE from Piestro:

The potions were put in on accident and quickly removed. If we do decide to reintroduce consumables we’ll certainly mention it.

Taking a page from Disney, SOE placed certain StationCash Marketplace items on hiatus a while back into a so-called “Brell Serilis vault“. This type of scheduled demand is intended to drive sales and create pent-up demand when said items are returned to the market. An example is the Prowler mounts first introduced just over 2 years ago.

We paid little attention to the unlocking of the vault announcement as SOE already does a fine job of communicating their weekly StationCash deals, to the exclusion of almost everything else about EQ2.

As a result, we missed two items which were previously EQ2X / Free-to-Play-only which slipped through. Cure Potions that cure 500 levels of any kind of detrimental, and Luck Potions that increase coin drop amounts from mobs by 25% (we are attempting to confirm if this includes or excludes treasure chests containing platinum).

The Brell Serilis Vault items are available until May 6th (we’re not sure if that is May 5th @ 11:59pm PST, or sometime on May 6th). Discuss this on the EQ2 Forums

I received an e-mail from SOE at 12:15am PST this morning notifying players that today is a Triple StationCash day. SOE really has this providing as little advance notice as possible thing down to a science. You can also read this late-day announcement at EverQuest2.com.

We’re going to assume, since it was not said otherwise, that this applies to all StationCash purchased in-game, at SOE.com, or with game cards in Europe, the USA, and now in Canada. Remember, Wal-Mart bonus cards are 1500SC plus 500SC which triples to 6000SC. Not bad for $15. You can get a year’s EQ2 subscription for $30 this way.

*Valid from 12:00AM PDT 4/28/2012 through 12:00AM PDT 4/29/2012.  Excludes purchases of SC made by SMS.

Time Zone Conversions

• PST: April 28 @ 12:01am ~ April 28 @ 11:59pm
• EST: April 28 @ 3:01am ~ April 29 @ 2:59am
• BST: April 28 @ 8:01 ~ April 29 @ 7:59
• CET: April 28 @ 9:01 ~ April 29 @ 8:59

From EQ2Talk.com:

Episode #44 – Wind Power

recorded on Apr 14

EQ2 Talk is excited to bring you Holly “Windstalker” Longdale, EverQuest 2 Producer. We asked her some of the burning questions about mechanics, dungeon finder, the in-game polls, and EQ2 Players. She also gives us a closer look at what the team has in store for players in GU63, offers some insight into the 2-level increase, explains a bit about prestige abilities, and talks about the team’s goals looking ahead.

We’ve listened to Episode #44 and here are a few gems:

• We may get some more detailed information on the breakouts for certain In-Game Poll questions, but providing detailed numbers on some of the questions would possibly provide information to competitors. We may see a future poll with more detailed questions about StationCash “power” items breaking out the use of power items in groups vs. raids.

• Only your FIRST poll entry on your account “counts”. The number of character alts you have does not determine how many “votes” you get.

We’re a bit late on this, but on April 4th, a new in-game poll was added to EQ2 about the StationCash Marketplace, specifically some items that were previously only available on the Freeport (formerly EQ2X) server. This issue is being discussed on the EQ2 Forums. Here are the contents of that in-game mail:

Greetings, Norrathians!

Most players spend a lot of time exploring and soloing, or delving into dungeons with a mercenary. There are items that would be extremely useful for these activites that used to be available on the marketplace on the Freeport server. We’d like to hear your opinions about those items and there is no predetermined plan for them. We are asking to get a fair representation without forcing everyone to debate on the forums.

Safe travels,

~ The EQII development team

After the jump, the in-game poll questions about Self-Resurrect Items, Power Potions, and Health Potions.

Oh look, another StationCash deal…

From a note on the EQ2 Launcher and a promotional e-mail from SOE:

In other news, the menu bar and navigation on EverQuest2.com now seems to be totally broken in Firefox 3.6.x.

From EverQuest2.com:

Spring Special!  Get two times the SC when you buy Station Cash® between April 6th and April 8th*!

* Valid from 12:01 AM PDT 4/6/2012 and 11:59 PM PDT 4/8/2012 only. Excludes purchases of Station Cash by SMS.

Cards Too!

We have confirmed with several players that StationCash Cards also apply to this Double SC event.

Time Zone Conversions

• PDT: Friday April 6 @ 12:01am ~ April 8 @ 11:59pm
• EDT: Friday April 6 @ 3:01am ~ April 9 @ 2:59am
• BST: Friday April 6 @ 8:01 ~ April 9 @ 7:59
• CET: Friday April 6 @ 9:01 ~ April 9 @ 8:59

And we thought they’d forgotten… From the EQ2 Forums:

GENERAL

• All single group instances now have a lockout of 90 minutes.

• Fixed a bug where lingering dot effects from dead and looted NPCs could start critting.

PLAYER HOUSING

• Marketplace housing deeds will now include the maximum number of placed items, prior to using house expanders, in the description.

• Increased item limit for Researcher’s Sanctum to 600.

ITEMS

• Drunder x4 priest breastplates (non-Challenge mode) can now proc Celestial Restoration III.

When we gained the ability to buy EQ2 subscriptions 1, 3, 6, or even 12 months in advance on the StationCash Marketplace, players rejoiced. With Double and Triple SC weekends, compounded with those handy Walmart bonus SC cards, players have been able to get EQ2 subscriptions for as little as $3.33 a month. However there was an eventual price to be paid for this price discount.

EQ2 Subscribers who have paid in advance for their subs with StationCash have had trouble buying Character Transfer Tokens, and been unable to Gift StationCash. We’ve talked about this in the past, and players reported in suggestions on how to work around the limits.

Now, Matt G has gone on the record with the reasoning for this delineation between Recurring and Non-recurring Subscriptions, and what steps you can take to access these features…

UPDATE: We are getting reports that the Wal-Mart exclusive StationCash cards with a +500 bonus are no longer doubling or tripling that bonus. This problem has been corrected, and redeemed cards are being retroactively credited.

In honor of EverQuest’s 13th Anniversary, from noon today until tomorrow is Double StationCash. You should confirm that the SC point value shown is correct before completing your transactions. From the original EverQuest forums:

In celebration of EverQuest’s 13th anniversary and transition to Free to Play. Your. Way. We will be offering double Station Cash! Hurry, only valid March 16, 12pm PDT to March 17, 12pm PDT*

*Excludes purchases of Station Cash by SMS

Time Zone Conversions

• PDT: March 16 @ Noon ~ March 17 @ Noon
• EDT: March 16 @ 3:00pm ~ March 17 @ 3:00pm
• GMT: March 16 @ 19:00 ~ March 17 @ 19:00
• CET: March 16 @ 20:00 ~ March 17 @ 20:00

From EverQuest2.com:

SOE is running an “Extra Day Extra Station Cash” promotion on Wednesday, February 29, 2012. This offer is valid from 12:01am PST on 2/29/2012 to 11:59pm PST on 2/29/2012 only. The offer is not valid for purchases made by SMS or with pre-paid game cards.

• Buy $5: Get 600 SC (100 bonus)
• Buy $10: Get 1,250 SC (250 bonus)
• Buy $20: Get 2,500 SC (500 bonus)
• Buy $25: Get 3,250 SC (750 bonus)
• Buy $50: Get 7,000 SC (2,000 bonus)
• Buy $100: Get 14,000 SC (4,000 bonus)

Visit SOE.com

Time Zone Conversions

• PST: Feb 29 @ 12:01am~Feb 29 @ 11:59pm
• EST: Feb 29 @ 3:01am~Mar 1 @2:59am
• GMT: Feb 29 @ 8:01~Mar 1 @7:59
• CET: Feb 29 @ 9:01~Mar 1 @8:59

A video preview hosted by Emily “Domino” Taylor of the new “Storm Tower” Prestige Home was posted last week, and now this home is available for purchase for 1350SC.

The preview:

The announcement from EverQuest2.com:

For those looking to create something evil and forboding, the new Storm Tower Isle Prestige Home has plenty of space for sinister decorating. Dark and stormy, the island comes complete with crashing waves, gloomy clouds, and a watchtower based on the Tower of Bone in Darklight Woods.

From TSR-JoshuaM on the EQ2 Forums:

We’ve reduced the amount of time needed in order to purchase a Character Transfer token to 7 days of active, recurring, Gold Membership time. This should alleviate a great deal of the gating issues preventing many of you from purchasing this token.

Station Cash purchases of Non-recurring Gold Membership does not make you eligible for Character Transfer services. This service is only extended to active, recurring, Gold Membership holders or Station Access subscribers.

In the event of an account to account transfer, a process which must be done manually, both accounts must be fully verified to start the process. This may be an issue for free-to-play accounts as you may not be able to meet the verification requirements and this cannot be excepted under any circumstance.

If the options of a Flying Gryphon, Hovering Disc, Cloud, and Pegasus weren’t enough, if flying as a Freeblood Cloud of Bats or Fae or Arasai weren’t enough, the time may have finally come for your flight option.

From EverQuest2.com:

It’s a bird, it’s a plane..No! It’s your EverQuest II character! Introducing the ground-breaking Flight Wings to EverQuest II. Now you can fly through the air with the attached Pegasus Feather Flight Wings or the Nightmare Flight Wings. Fly through Norrath in style, group with your friends and intimidate all challengers as you swoop into action from above.

First I’d like to wish a Happy New Year to all of you. No doubt many took advantage of the Double XP weekend and squeezed in the last bit of Frostfell magic.

In the coming weeks, we should be hearing more from EQ2 developers and their work on the upcoming Game Update 63 coming in February. This update is expected to include new Destiny of Velious content, including dungeons, raids, and more.

Here are some issues we’re tracking this week, some of which got a nod from a developer or community:

• Character Lighting
• EQ2Players
• Invisible Mercenary Healers
• Timorous Deep (Kunark) client crashes
• Tradeskill Apprentice Recipes for Provisioners
• Characters Stuck in Frostfell
• Character Transfer Server Tokens
• What House Items do you want?

News will be a bit light over the next few days, so we wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  Whether you’re spending time with friends, family, or your in-game family, we hope you have a good holiday.

EQ2Wire has a huge year planned, including tackling the Dungeon Maker, delving further into Beastlords and Mercenaries, covering the new Velious content in February and May 2012, building a new site on the Data Feeds, and more.

Remember Double StationCash is still running through tomorrow and Double XP is December 30th to January 2nd. Frostfell runs through January 3rd.

Cartoon courtesy Bill Watterson

If you’ve been wondering just what percentage of StationCash is spent in EQ2 (and FreeRealms) on Mounts, vs. Appearance Armor, vs. other consumables, SOE has released a rare infographic laying out some of these details. We first picked up this story from Massively.

Also on Massively this week, Karen Bryan looks ahead to “phase two” of EQ2. Now that the Age of Discovery crunch time has passed, we are cautiously hopeful that the team can step back for a moment and take a look at the bigger issues in the game which are really holding it back. Basic mechanics like Pathing, Line of Sight, Stats Imbalances, Itemization, etc. have to be right before you can build on that foundation.

Here’s that infographic:

The following graphic appears on the EverQuest II launcher:

It looks like SOE is going to double the value of any Station Cash card redeemed between December 24 and December 27, 2011. These are only SOE Pre-Paid Game Cards available in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

Time Zone Conversions

• PST: December 24 @ 12:01AM ~ December 27 11:59PM
• EST: December 24 @ 3:01AM ~ December 28 2:59AM
• GMT: December 24 @ 8:01 ~ December 28 7:59
• CET: December 24 @ 9:01 ~ December 28 8:59

From EverQuest2.com:

Here is another opportunity to get a great deal on Station Cash!

Tomorrow will be the 8th day of SOE’s 12 Days of Holidays celebration! We’re happy to be able to give you double when you buy Station Cash anytime on December 20, 2011. Just buy Station Cash in-game, via your Station Account or redeem an SOE Pre-Paid Game Card and you’ll get Double Station Cash!

But hurry, this offer is only valid 12/20/11, from 12:01 AM PST to 11:59 PM PST!

Plus, don’t forget to login to participating games throughout the SOE 12 Days of Holidays to see what the daily special offer or activity is!

*Station Cash offer valid on 12/20/11, from 12:01 AM PST to 11:59 PM PST; excludes mobile/SMS purchases.

From RadarX on the EverQuest2 Facebook page:

To our valued Steam customers: We sincerely apologize that Station Cash purchased via Steam during our Triple Station Cash promotion today was not properly credited. We are working with Steam and want to ensure those affected that we will automatically credit the additional Station Cash earned during today’s promotion. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Customer Service via http://www.soe.com/en/support/. Thank you again for your patience and understanding. [RadarX]

From EverQuest2.com:

This offer is only valid on December 17, 2011!

Celebrate the holidays with Triple Station Cash for one day only! Buy Station Cash in-game, via your Station Account or redeem an SOE Pre-Paid Game Card and you’ll get Triple Station Cash!
But hurry, this offer ends December 17, 2011 at 11.59 pm PST!

Plus, don’t forget to login to participating games throughout the SOE 12 Days of Holidays to see what the daily special offer, sale or activity is!

*Station Cash offer valid on 12/17/11, from 12:01 AM PST to 11:59 PM PST; excludes mobile/SMS purchases.

From Domino on the EQ2 Forums:

For twelve days of Frostfell, we’re picking one top selling item per day and putting it on sale at a huge discount for that one day only.  The items will change over around 10-11am (pacific time) each morning from now until the 24th of December.  Be sure to check in each day to see what’s on sale.

And on the first day of Frostfell… pick up the beautiful original Pegasus mount for only 600SC!

Check out the “sale” tab in the marketplace to find it; only till tomorrow morning, so don’t miss it!  Watch this forum or log in each day to see the new sale items.

Traditionally, when an item has been placed in a Guild Hall, that item has been considered as “donated” by the person placing it. As there is no cash value to items acquired in-game, donation seems an appropriate paradigm.

However with the introduction of furniture and other placeable items to the StationCash Marketplace, you are entering the realm of items with cash value. The ability to place items purchased with StationCash in Guild Halls has been inconsistent at best, mostly because of the Customer Service implications of thousands of players asking for their StationCash money back (or items) if they are booted from a guild they just finished placing $30, $40, or more dollars worth of items into.

This issue has been endlessly discussed on the EQ2 forums, with players arguing both sides, either that all items placed in a Guild Hall should be considered forfeit, or that Marketplace items are special because of the inherent cash value, and some even advocating that ALL items placed in a Guild Hall should be re-claimable by the placer.

Personally, I am in the camp that when you start factoring real money into the game, then you have to be very careful about transfer of ownership, and I’m not sure that placing an item in a Guild Hall should automatically be considered transfer of ownership. This isn’t chump change either. Some of the furniture sets in the Marketplace costs in excess of $30.

As a matter of course, we have left the marketing of StationCash Marketplace items to the forums, EverQuest2.com, and the Welcome window when logging into EQ2. However this week’s haul includes a set of in-game paintings, something players have been requesting for quite some time.

We got a giggle out of the title of this painting ‘Seeking the Burned Woods’. If you don’t know the backstory on that, read the story. Maybe the next bunch of paintings will include Fansy the Bard.

These 5 paintings are $2.50 each (.83 cents each if you got triple SC).

From Everquest2.com:

Trick-or-Treat! Double Your Treats on 10/29/11!

What better way to fill your Halloween goody bag than with DOUBLE STATION CASH®! Get Double Station Cash on Saturday October 29, 2011 starting at 12:01 AM PDT when you redeem any SOE Pre-Paid Game Card or buy Station Cash*.

Plus, we have more tricks and treats in participating games throughout the SOE Trick-or-Treat Event! For more details visit www.soe.com/trickortreat.

*Offer runs October 29, 2011, 12:01 AM PDT through 11:59 PM PDT; excludes purchase by mobile/SMS.

Participating games include: EverQuest® EverQuest® II,;EverQuest® II Extended, DC Universe™ Online, Free Realms®, Star Wars®: Clone Wars Adventures™, PoxNora® and Magic : The Gathering – Tactics™