Game Update 64: Qeynos Reborn is coming today on all servers. It’s been 3 months since the long-awaited GU 63, which included the second part of Age of Discovery. In GU 63 we got new contested zones, new group zones and new raid zones, all for players level 85 and higher, not to mention an increase in levels and those wonderful Prestige Points. So what does this Game Update hold in store for us?

Qeynos will finally be easier to navigate, and there will be many new quests for the area, including a new lower level Public Quest in Antonica; Darklight Woods is going to get another visual revamp, although it will be slight; and Battlegrounds and PvP get changes made to them as well. And if this all sounds like it doesn’t affect high-end players, well you’re right.

The upcoming Game Update 64: Qeynos Rises includes significant changes to Player vs Player and Battlegrounds, a light polish to Darklight Woods (Neriak), itemization tweaks (normal mode Dozekar gains Breastplates, Sevelak breastplates will be boosted to match the difficulty), a Public Quest in Antonica, and of course the revamp of Qeynos with 108 new quests.

Our hats off to Karen Bryan at Massively who has done not one, not two, but three preview articles on the upcoming update…

On July 19th, 2012, Dave “SmokeJumper” Georgeson interviewed Paul “Cronyn” Molina and Nathan “Kaitheel” McCall to tell the story and share the lore of Qeynos Rises, so don’t miss it! This webcast is now online at TwitchTV.

We’re anxiously awaiting the reposting of the SOE Community Webcast about the lore of the upcoming Game Update 64: Qeynos Reborn, but we now have a date! Tuesday July 24th is when we can expect this update. We expect 4-6 hours of downtime as the update is installed, and then European players will need to wait until that evening for their update.

Host Dave Georgeson will interview Paul Molina and Nathan McCall to tell the story and share the lore of Qeynos Rises, so don’t miss it!

Join us on Thursday, July 19, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV! The webcast is expected to last about 20 minutes.

SOE Community Webcast: Qeynos Reborn Lore link

From the EQ2 Forums:

EverQuest II Webcast

Qeynos Rises on July 24th! Host Dave Georgeson will interview Paul Molina and Nathan McCall to tell the story and share the lore of Qeynos Rises, so don’t miss it!

Join us on Thursday, July 19, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV! The webcast is expected to last about 20 minutes.

See you on Twitch TV!

Time Zone Conversions

• PDT: July 19 @ 4:00pm
• EDT: July 19 @ 7:00pm
• BST: July 20 @ 0:00
• CET: July 20 @ 1:00

It’s time for another in-game poll for EQ2 players. The two questions in this month’s poll address the recent Game Update 63: Skyshrine content as well as the upcoming Game Update 64: Qeynos Reborn. None of the questions touch on the quality or content of the question, only asking players to identify what content they have or have not been playing.

NOTE: As mentioned in the past, only the first poll entry for each account is measured.

After the jump, we provide the questions for posterity’s sake…

Want to give the Game Update 64 Battlegrounds changes, including Level Agnostic Battlegrounds a test drive and give useful feedback to developers?

From EQ2 Community Manager Duxella on the EQ2 Forums:

Level Agnostic Battleground testing from 5-7 PST – bring a character below level 35 to the Level Agnostic buffer, set up your character and then get into a battleground! Buffers will be located on the docks in Kylong Plains, and at the Champion’s Respite zone-ins in Qeynos and Freeport.

Level 92 testing from 7-8 PST – visit a level 92 PVP buffer, set up your character and then get into a battleground!

Time Zone Conversions

Level 1-89 Battleground Testing

• PDT: July 13 @ 5-7:00pm
• EDT: July 13 @ 8-10:00pm
• BST: July 14 @ 1:00~3:00
• CET: July 14 @ 2:00~4:00

Level 92 Battleground Testing

• PDT: July 13 @ 7-8:00pm
• EDT: July 13 @ 10-11:00pm
• BST: July 14 @ 3:00~4:00
• CET: July 14 @ 4:00~5:00

For those preferring a more descriptive rendition of just what we can expect in the upcoming Game Update 64 (previously presented as a bullet point list), Holly “Windstalker” Longdale has posted the July Update Plans for EQ2 which largely mirror what we know about GU64. From the EQ2 Forums:

Summer is finally here and the team is toiling away! We’ve got a few new faces added to the team and we’re going to introduce them with some awesome headshots.  On to what we’re working on…

QEYNOS RISES JULY 24

The new Qeynos is rife with intrigue and conflict as the city, Queen Antonia Bayle, and the Circle of Ten evolve and struggle to oversee the welfare of the goodly folk of Norrath. As is in most places in Norrath, power can tip the scales. The new racial quests, which are available at all levels, offer history and an introduction to your origins as well as a sense of your place within your race while experiencing the Qeynosian struggles. The new class and storyline quests, starting at level 20, drop you amidst the city’s strife with your brethren all the way to the high court.

Buried in the update notes for the forthcoming Game Update 64 (and reiterated in the GU64 Webcast) was an interesting detail:

• Elemental, Noxious, and Arcane Resists would be folded into player-selected Character Traits, but Physical Mitigation would not.

These days, most players select Physical Mitigation as a Character Trait choice rather than Resists. Physical Mitigation usually works out to be a better bang for your buck. Further, a number of players have already reached the hard limit on resists and so don’t benefit from it at all.

So the idea that players would login after Game Update 64 and lose 1,656 mitigation was not the most appealing prospect and spawned a discussion on the EQ2 Forums.

Game Update 64 “Qeynos Rises” has arrived on Test and Test Copy and the Notes for this update have been posted on the EQ2 forums. GU64 is expected to hang around on Test for about a month before going to the Live servers.

Among a number of other changes, GU64 sees Qeynos rebuilt as two zones. North and South Qeynos become the Capital District, Elddar Grove and Qeynos Harbor become the Provinces. Changes to Battlegrounds, PvP, and Fighters are all headlines, with the curious change that Plane of War has been opened to all.

Xelgad (by way of Ashlanne) has posted some additional information about the upcoming Fighter changes that come with Game Update 64. But first, Piestro has some comments about rushing to judgment:

Obviously this is a change that we knew people would be passionate about. Of course until people see the actual changes any evaluation of their impact is premature. The best way to move forward is to write down your concerns, and then formulate a test plan based on those concerns. That will give you the best possible start to actually testing the changes, and seeing what their actual impacts are.

And now that overview of the Fighter changes in GU63 from the EQ2 Forums:

Greetings everyone, Xelgad here! I’d like to explain some of the changes to our fighter archetype that you will be seeing on the Test Server soon.

From the EQ2 Forums:

Hey all, Xelgad here! I wanted to explain some of the improvements to our Character Development window that you will be seeing on Test Server soon.

The biggest change is that class foci from armor will instead be granted through the Character Development window. Carried over from tier to tier for years, these foci have become part of the standard class more than a reward for acquiring high end gear. You can choose one bonus every nine levels, starting at level nine.

(Do you really want this? Of course you do!)

On June 21, 2012, Dave “Smokejumper” Georgeson (Executive Director of Development) discussed the upcoming Game Update 64, specifically PvP, Battlegrounds, and Fighter changes with Akil “Lyndro” Hooper (Lead Designer), Mike “Xelgad” Ganz (Associate Game Designer), and Brian “Omougi” Ferguson (Associate Game Designer).

Game Update 64 will be hitting the Test and Test Copy servers next Tuesday.

NOTE: Make sure you’ve got your volume turned down as the video opens with a loud throat clearing.

In addition to the Qeynos Revamp and some tweaks to the Fighter archetype, Game Update 64 will bring significant long-awaited changes to PvP and Battlegrounds. From the EQ2 Forums:

With GU64 we are working hard to improve our PVP experience. Our goal is to make our PVP more accessible, more rewarding, and ultimately more fun!

File this under better late than never, but Game Update 64 will be rolling out much-needed changes to the Itemization of Drunder raid zones. New items are being added throughout the Drunder raid timeline which will more closely resemble what players have come to expect in Skyshrine zones. In addition, some of the items that people still desire out of Drunder, specifically the insanely rare Mythical weapons will become more common.

From Kander on the EQ2 Forums:

Sullon’s Spire [Challenge], Tallon’s Stronghold [Challenge] and Vallon’s Tower [Challenge] Raids will have new itemization with GU 64. Item scope will be boosted to be in between Skyshrine normal mode raids and challenge mode raids.