Feldon Game Update 56, or least major chunks of it have been pushed to the Test Server. Already, I and other players have noted that certain textures are missing (especially with Shaders 3.0 enabled), and all housing is currently unavailable (making it impossible to take a peek inside the 2, 4, and 6 bedroom New Halas housing.
But what may be more interesting is not what files are missing, but what files are unexpected. Because the Live and Test Servers are just another development branch of EQ2, inevitably, some Expansion and future Game Update/Live Event files get tagged and download to our computers.
Close examination of these files have revealed some tantalizing peaks into the next expansion, as well as a preamble event.
* MAJOR SPOILER ALERT * MAJOR SPOILER ALERT *
If you don’t like spoilers about the next Expansion, then don’t read further.
After the Order of Rime quest series was added, the near-unanimous belief was that the expansion after The Shadow Odyssey would in fact be Velious. Many players were shocked when it turned out to be Odus (not to mention the 3 month tardy release date).
Some of the quests within the New Halas starting area make substantial mention of Velious and the Coldain.
But it is these stray files, as reported by Vulkoor Z’Torien of Antonia Bayle, that prove most interesting:
- _exp07/characters/tool_users/othmir_male_base
- _exp07/characters/tool_users/othmir_female_base
The Othmir are an otter-like humanoid race.
- _exp07/characters/tool_users/tserrina/tserrina
Tserrina Syl`Tor was the boss of the Tower of Frozen Shadow zone from the Velious expansion.
- staticobjects/_exp07_prelude/druid_ring_phase1_loping
- staticobjects/_exp07_prelude/druid_ring_phase1_nek
- staticobjects/_exp07_prelude/druid_ring_phase1_zek
- staticobjects/_exp07_prelude/druid_ring_phase3_ferrott
From this, one can conclude that travel to Velious will take place through the revamped Druid Ring system, and a preamble event will involve rebuilding at least these 4 druid rings.
Please be aware that this is all speculation based on unexpected files in the Test Update package.
OTHMIR!
I want to be one even if it is just a illusion. I’d prefer it to be a player race though. Othmir paladins. Nobody expects something that small and cute to be packing steal. Thats what they used to think about ratonga til it was *cough* too late. 🙂
I only got one word if this is true: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
If they made Othmir a playable race they’d have my subscription for life. =) Still.. Holy crap! Can’t wait to see them. =)
I used to visit terrible quad-kiting based atrocities on those Othmir. Even now the squeals sound like the wonder of xp shortly coming my way.
I hope against expectation they don’t do a half assed job of Velious if that is in fact what we’re getting.
Mark me down as completely unsurprised!
What’s Velious?
Seriously, everywhere I go people are slavering over the possibility of this being an expansion, but to people like myself who never played EQ1 we’re just left wondering what its all about. All I want is for the next place to go to be somewhere great.
Velious was an early EQ1 expansion, right after Kunark, it included a new UI, ..It had massive (by EQ standards) outdoor ice zones, Tserrina’s castle – 7 levels of mayhem. It had 3 main fighting factions, Coldain Dwarves, Kael Drakel Giants, and Dragons… players could align themselves with any of the three..and it was also home to Karafim (sleepers tomb).. it was massive back then. Iceclad ocean, Eastern and western wastes..Sirens Grotto..THurgadin..Kael Drakel..Velketors Labyrinth..Colbalt Scar.. Temple of
Veeshan… The Wakening Lands..Tunares home in Plane of Growth…just to name a few zones…But they have to do it right…needs to be a stand alone full leveling expansion imho.