Feldon Yesterday, two Press sites posted their articles about the upcoming Aerakyn race. At 8:00pm, the official news dropped on the EQ2 Forums:
Are you ready to start an adventure with a unique new player race? Get ready, because Aerakyns will soon be available for you to customize and start your journeys! Players will be able to purchase the new Aerakyn race from the EverQuest II Marketplace beginning November 11, 2014. Want to learn more about the Aerakyns? Well, we’ve got the information ready for you!
The Aerakyns were once the unwilling soldiers of the great Prismatic Dragon, Kerafyrm. Now free from his thrall, but unable to return to their homelands, they seek to re-establish their culture in Norrath. Since the Aerakyns were used as shock troops by Kerafyrm throughout Age’s End, they are looked upon suspiciously by most Norrathians. Despite the general prejudice against them, the Aerakyns are a neutral race of seasoned warriors who are determined to prove their worth. Let’s take a look at some of the characteristics that really make the Aerakyns stand out from other Norrathian races!
Customizations
When you create your Aerakyn, you’ll be able to make them stand out in a crowd by choosing from a variety of appearance customizations. Not only can you choose horn types – including facial horns on the male – you can also pick from a wide variety of colors for skin, scale, hair, and eyes that will allow you to create a very unique character. The Aerakyn’s scales are combined with their wing structures so that the colors travel from around their horns and down their necks and arms giving them an all-over striking appearance.Wing Appearances and Mounts
One of the most distinguishing characteristics of an Aerakyn is their wings. Special racial wings are granted at the level 1, 30, 60, and 85 milestones. The standard Aerakyn race will gain new wing appearances at each of the level milestones. The Noble Aerakyn race unlocks the new wing appearances as well as unlocks wing mounts for each milestone. The upgraded wing mounts for the Noble Aerakyns will offer new travel options (such as increased ground speed, leaping, gliding, and flying) at each milestone, making their wings a truly functional extension.Wing Attack Animations
The skilled Aerakyns have also learned how to maneuver their wings during battle! Standard Aerakyns will be able to use wing attack animations while they are unarmed. Noble Aerakyns will be granted a special appearance weapon that can be used in a weapon appearance slot, allowing them to play wing attack animations while wielding weapons in equipment slots.Unique Character Trait
In addition to a striking appearance, animated wing attacks, and enhanced wing mobility, the Aerakyns also have a special trait specific to their race. The Aerakyns are born with a unique ability called Pyrebreath Bulwark, which provides an elemental cure and ward. This resilient race definitely has an innate tendency towards survival!Content for Aerakyns
You can’t have a new player race without uncovering the amazing lore that brings these Aerakyns into the cities. There is a racial quest in two of Norrath’s most-notable cities – Freeport and Qeynos. Through these quests, the Aerakyns will learn more about where they come from and why they now seek to establish themselves in a new home.Creating an Aerakyn
Now that you’ve seen some of the amazing things that go along with being an Aerakyn, you’re probably wondering “How can I play one?!” There will be two types of Aerakyns available to play: the Aerakyn, a standard version of the race, and the Noble Aerakyn, an upgraded version of the race with additional features. Players will be able to unlock access to the new race from the character creation screen or by accessing the in-game Marketplace. The following Marketplace options will be available so that players can choose the combination that works best for them:Aerakyn
The Aerakyn race will be available for 2000SC. It includes racial traits and appearance wings. New appearances are unlocked at Adventure or Tradeskill milestones levels 30, 60, and 85. The Aerakyn will also use wing attacks when unarmed.Noble Aerakyn
The Noble Aerakyn will be available for 4200SC. The ability to use wing mounts and a special appearance weapon help set this noble Aerakyn apart. The wing mounts offer travel benefits through Adventure and Tradeskill milestones that begin at level 1 and increase at levels 30, 60, and 85. These benefits begin with a run speed increase at level 1 and increase to leaping, gliding, and finally flying added at each subsequent milestone. The Noble Aerakyn also receives an appearance weapon at level 1 that allows the Aerakyn to use wing attack animations while wielding weapons.Upgrade Aerakyn to Noble Aerakyn.
This upgrade will be available for 2200SC. It will add the Level 1 ground speed increase wing mount and the ability to earn 3 additional wing mounts upon leveling (leaping, gliding, and flying) and includes the appearance weapon at level 1. The character is granted wing mounts at level 30, 60, and 85 and will be granted all the level-appropriate wing mounts upon upgrading.Discounted Noble Aerakyn Bundle with Character Slot
Do you desperately want to create an Aerakyn but don’t have any more character slots? Players will be able to purchase the Noble Aerakyn together with an additional character slot for 4800SC.Discounted Noble Bundle that includes a Heroic Character Bauble AND character slot
Players will be able to purchase a Noble Aerakyn with a Heroic Character upgrade bauble and character slot for 7700SC.It’s time to create an Aerakyn and venture through the lands with your majestic, draconic wings! What aspects are you looking forward to the most about the new Aerakyn player race?
Don’t miss these unique characteristics for the new Aerakyn race!
By the way, if you purchase one Noble Aerakyn upgrade, the features are accountwide for other Aerakyns you might create. From Holly “Windstalker” Longdale‘s twitter:
If you purchase a Noble Aerakyn, all your new Aerakyns will include the wing mounts and appearance weapons. #eq2
— Holly Longdale (@WindstalkerEQ2) November 5, 2014
$42 for a race that can fly like fae/arasai Someone at $OE needs to put the crack pipe down.
More proof EQ2 is dying and they are squeezing the remaining players for all that turnip can churn.
Wow… all i can say is WOW seriously! LMAO paying more for a race then what you would pay for a new game ? Lord. no wonder Smedleys twitter died off.. im sure he closed it
It’s kind of disappointing that the Aerakyn are so much – I am about as enthused with them as I was the Freebloods. I don’t think they look very attractive appearance wise. Their wings are pretty cool, but I would have much preferred such wings on a Sarnak instead. 😉
Anyway, the perks don’t really match up to the cost, similar to the CE. I don’t really know *what* SOE is thinking, but it doesn’t really matter. As a crafter/decorator, the most I’d be doing in AoM is leveling my crafters to 100. I love Norrath too much to quit it, as do many, and I wouldn’t say it is dying but if the prices continue to be this way, I may just have to suck it up and wait ’til it becomes free to F2P people.
i think that SOE think their poor income because of all the benefits to users so far, so they keep cut down benefits…
i don’t think it’s a good move for both SOE and users…
i would bet that SOE is using their model from when the freebloods were a paid for race. If you look back to that, it cost 4500 to unlock the freebloods, unlock the weapons, and unlock the mount.
Pricing out this unlock it would be 2000 for the class, 1950 for the flying mount, 1350 for the leaping mount, 950 for the gliding mount, 750 for the groundd mount, and 450 for the weapon unlock; resulting in a total of 7450.
In SOE’s eyes, 4200 is a bargain compared to 7450. I’m not defending their pricing decision, but point out a possible justification according to them.
I agree on what you are saying, but as everyone has already noted, the cost is more than an expansion and to most, like the CE, unrealistically priced. Oh well, I have no desire to waste any money on the race. Maybe some time after it comes on sale and I have extra sc from my monthly allotment. lol.
And let’s not forget, Station cash back then didn’t really cost 1 dollar for 100. There were so many double and triple sales. Rebate sales. Half price everything sales.
When I bought a mount for 2000 SC back then, it’s true cost to me in dollars was probably more like 5 bucks between the various sales I took part in.
Yeah but that was another showing of how their marketing department was doing stupid things. They were giving out so many double and triple SC days that they were losing money. So they got rid of those things entirely and seem to have not realized that that means they need price adjusting to fix the fact that people aren’t rolling in SC anymore.
As I see more and more of the hand SOE is dealing, it makes it easier and easier to take my entertainment dollars elsewhere.
The standard edition of the expansion is no higher priced than any before, and this race is not required to play. In fact it’s a fluff thing that you don’t need and doesn’t impact gameplay at all.
They aren’t forcing you to spend any more money then you have ever spent before. Heck, because of their pricing system right now i’ll actually probably end up spending less than I usually do for expansions since I probably won’t buy the CE.
Is the CE super stupidly high priced? Yes, but I don’t have to buy it, I can buy the normal one and after suffering horrid sales on the CE this time marketing will probably figure out to go back to the normal pre-order pricing scale. If not I’ll just be buying normal instead of CE from now on, no big deal.
Is this race stupidly high priced? Yes, but not only do I not want it I don’t need it. Small sales on it might get them to drop the price later for those who truly do want it.
you’re not being gouged. To be gouged you’d have to be forced to pay a higher price for normal content. If someone wants to pay a stupid high price for a CE they can go right ahead, but I’m betting the vast majority will just go for the normal edition instead.
It won’t take long with bad sales on this sort of stuff for marketing to figure out their ideas aren’t working.
Well to sell this xpac, they should have put the Standard Race package in with the expansion, Then sold the extra’s Separately. This would have been a FAR better marketing tactic.
The CE package should have been an ALL IN ONE deal Not the BLEH it is. i see record LOW sales on the collectors edition.
i would say over HALF the people that are still left playing this game are older on fixed income. i am in 3 different guilds between all my toons, and 3 in 5 are older peps, disabled vets ect.. all on fixed incomes and i have heard many of them say they cannot afford anything but the standard expansion.
Sad thing is, i have seen companies commit suicide with these same tactics, the logic is sometimes just not there, in other words most lack common sense.
So with that being said, when the Sales for Fluff items go down they think its just because its “Undesirable” and production is halted based on popular demand statistics. All the while Refusing the basic simple fact that the items are Popular, and people really want said item, when the only real fact remains – its the Marketing Teams Horrid Pricing system vs peoples in ability to afford that on personal budgets. in the long run they end up Loosing money, Profit margins plummet and they may end up out of a job.
I agree with you about the expansion, and the likelihood of very low sales on it. And maybe I am giving their marketing division to much credit in thinking they will figure out that they’ve done wrong, but I can always hope. Dollar for dollar this is still one of the cheapest forms of entertainment I’ve got and I hope they don’t screw it up.
I could afford the CE but I really, really don’t want to reward this kind of behavior either. I know for a fact that none of my friends will get the CE, it’s just to high priced. I even usually buy the expansion for one of them because he has other things he needs to put money to.
Due to recent forum posts about expansion pricing and new race pricing:
Perhaps what needs to happen is eq2 players band together and pick a day to have a 24 hour LOG IN BOYCOTT in protest of the pricing of the new expansion, and race.( I suggest this coming weekend November 8th PRIOR to the new expansions release )
there are MANY eq2 players disgruntled for various different reasons. Instead lets just pick a day to NOT login to eq2 to show our resolve that this needs to be reconsidered or changed . and send a clear and unified message
I would just ASK that THOSE WHO WISH TO PARTICIPATE JUST NOT LOG IN ON EQ2 THE 8TH of NOVEMBER. I will post this on the FB pages I frequent as well as discuss this in my in game voice chat channel eq2.freeport.kordytorium feel free to drop in and discuss it my IGN it is kordelane on freeport server
While the thought is admirable, not logging in doesn’t do a thing to affect their cash flow. (Which is what I’m imagining you’d want to do to prove a point)
For members, they wouldn’t care if you didn’t ever log on so long as you paid your subscription each month. For free to play, logging on doesn’t make SOE money, buying from the marketplace does.
If you want to make a statement, stop paying. That’s all you can do to show a business you don’t approve of what they do.
The long and short of it is, I’m afraid to say, and apologies for the Profanity, but:-
F*cking greedy C*nts
Look. I know SOE’s hurting.
Sony’s right about junk bond status right now.
They took a bath on development with blown and multiply-rebooted games.
Not to mention what happened with SC when someone in accounting finally figured out how to use a spreadsheet.
But given the history with the fan base, as well as the incredibly sketchy state of the economy those same fans are facing, I’m unconvinced of the wisdom of their marketing plan for a ten-year-old game.
This isn’t going to end well if someone doesn’t talk sense into them.
$40 million pissed away on Free Realms.
Who knows how much on The Agency.
Who knows how much on the first 3 versions of EQNext that they scrapped.
According to Gamasutra, SOE wrote off $60.7 million in losses this year.
But they cannot just crank the price to 11 and hope people buy it.
They sure are trying though, cuz you know … 11 is more
This really is too much. No pre-order sale…in fact no sale at all, a bare boned SE edition and now $42 for a fully functional race.
I dont have any max level characters but I was going to buy the CE as I usually do, but without a sale I will not do so. Even though I wasn’t going to buy the expac I planned to purchase the race, but now I will not do that either. Good job SOE, you are on quite a roll here.
As much as I hate to see good people lose jobs if these pricing trends continue I have a feeling we will be seeing another headline like this in the future: https://eq2wire.com/2013/08/28/breaking-soe-layoffs/
PR and marketing need to get the message. Sales numbers are the only way that happens. Instead of a “login boycott” that never shows up on a sales report, the boycott had to be on CE, gm research, and extras. A marketplace boycott could be noticed, but to many cashed up players can’t help themselves.
Those are the folks I blame for Sony marketing tactics. It’s your fellow payers that have 20 houses, all of the SC mounts, are already fully GM on their toons via SC research, etc. These are the people who have given Sony a taste for whales; people just hanging for something new to throw money at.