Froglok newbie zone

Z

Zarimus

Dalayan Beginner
I started a froglok shaman on the weekend to see their new newbie zone and found it a difficult place to begin.

The mobs in the area are higher level than I would have expected. Aside from the skitterlings everything is yellow or red to a level 1 character, which pretty much restricts the XP diet to the bugs. They are hard to spot against the texture of the terrain and are aggro, which can easily result in two or more ganging up on a level 1. There are also plenty of roaming vulfwere pups which are level 4 or so and aggro, but they're easy enough to dodge if you're watching.

Skitterlings are also rather scarce, as a single frog in the zone I had trouble finding them (unless I was fighting one, in which case another would find my back half the time... sigh). Fortunately there aren't a lot of newbie frogs on at any one time. It still took much, much longer to hit level three (when it was reasonable to fight feeder calves and vulfwere pups) than it would have in the Newport newbie area. Once I hit level 3 there was plenty to fight though.

The skitterlings drop a good selling carapace from time to time, which makes up for the few copper pieces the calf and pup drops sell for. I wasn't able to find any quests to turn in items for XP and coin, but those could be coming. It seems odd to have to chase the level 1 critters around for cash though.

A big annoyance so far for my frog is that I could not find a bag vendor anywhere in the starter town, leaving me with six available slots for loot. If someone is selling bags, they're hiding well.

My suggestions then:

1) Change skitterlings to be non-aggro, and increase the number of them. Alternately lower the level of the mountain salamanders so that they can also be fought by a level 1-2 character, and increase their numbers. Maybe even toss in a new level 1-2 monster type to roam the area.

2) Lower (but don't eliminate) the number of roaming vulfwere pups. There are a number of camps of these beasts so reducing the aggro roamers won't hurt leveling off them and will allow newbies to roam the central valley hunting for things they can fight.

3) The overhead map of the newbie froglok city shows a merchant (Roark?) just by the exit to the newbie zone, but there's only a guardian in the building no matter what time of day it is. Add a merchant there, maybe put bags in his inventory as per the standard general merchant.

I did like how all the guards are keen to tell you about their city and religion, they come off like the proper little fanatics they are. :)
 
I played a froglok newbie as well, twice, and had no issues at all finding scitterlings to kill. The spawngroup is set to be half scitterlings.
 
Wiz said:
I played a froglok newbie as well, twice, and had no issues at all finding scitterlings to kill. The spawngroup is set to be half scitterlings.
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BS. Wiz just powerlevels all his noobs using a thousand point damage shield killing raid mobs in five hits.

And I'm done.

No real info, advice, or general ramblings on the topic at hand though.
 
I was considering mentioning something about this too and suppose I will while the thread is here. I have a 23 pally that I started when Sadri Malath was first put in and before Sundered had any mobs but the translocator. After hearing that it was populated, I headed over to check things out, and went back to Sadri for the first time since my early levels.

I enjoyed it and all, but I agree that the mobs are too high level in Sundred. It could have been bad luck, but on my way to the translocator I stopped to fight a nice dark blue panda and when it was around 20% hp two more panda's and some wandering vulfwere druid showed up. The druid rooted me and the 3 of them proceeded to kick my ass.

I know that this sort of thing happens, but I was 23 and in what I thought should have been a newbie zone. It isn't a problem for me personally, I'm enjoying my current froglok and won't be making a new any time soon, but it could be a problem for new ones. Nobody is going to stay in the zone until they are high enough to risk the run to the translocator and I think it's quite a dangerous run for low levels.

In other newbie starting zones, the translocators are in safe places. The Newport Translocator is in the town, and the Oggok one is on a path patrolled by guards right outside of town. I don't think its fair to newbie frogloks to have to run so far just to leave their starting zone.

Hitting on one of Zarimus' points, I was actually attacked by a skitterling, which was fine but they must have a very high aggro level to attack a level 23 that was passing through. I've noticed that once you get high enough green KOS mobs leave you alone even if you are standing near them, it seems odd that one so much lower than me would attack while i was moving.

Anyway, I haven't started a froglok there since the mobs were put in, so I can't offer any input about the leveling, but I do think the translocator is quite a run for little frogloks. I don't know of any real changes to make to the mobs, but I think the translocator should be moved closer to the city. As Zarimus said, there are very few froglok newbies and I'd imagine grouping would be very limited in Sundered. Most new frogloks would want to get to Oggok and Newport to start grouping in Centuar or Stingers and take out some Adepts. I think that if I got killed on my way to the translocator while trying to get to a group, espically if it happened more than once, I'd start being put off by the game.

I also think it could potentially be a discouraging waste of money. Until I was around level 14 I couldn't buy or sell in Newport and couldn't find a fletcher in Oggok so I had to go back to Sadri for arrows. I would have been very upset to spend 2plat (which was a big deal as a low level) on the translocator, only to be killed before reaching Sadri and have to translocate again.

Just my 2 cents. But thanks for getting the zone populated so fast, I plan to do a bit of hunting there to make up for the lack of mobs when I was a lower level.
 
Update... the scitterlings are now Non aggro. THANK YOU.

The roaming spawn breakdown in the valley is

3 Scitterlings - level 1
2-4 Feeders - level 2-3
2-6 Pups - level 3-4 (Aggro)

I have done it twice now, once last week with a shaman and aggro scits, once yesterday with a warrior and unaggro scits. Those numbers are accurate. The salamanders are slightly higher level, unaggro, and mobile (they leave the valley) so I cannot get an accuracte count on them.

Feeders and Scits still assist. Scits are still VERY hard to find.

Before level 5 or more, characters are simply not equiped or able to enact manuvers like pulling to the wall. We are forced to enguage where the mobs are. Given that scits spawn together and move in tight patterns, there is not much difference between aggro and non aggro. The major one is that you can no longer run through a section hoping to aggro one scit and keep running to the wall.

To avoid death, we have to run to the guards when a pup attacks us. This costs you the spawn of whatever you were fighting as lost. Given that there are exactly 3 scits every 6 minutes or so, this is a heart felt loss. For anyone trying it, the tactic I have found best is to intentionally aggro 2 pups, jump every obstacle, and run them to the guards. Mend up, fight one scit, mend up, repeat with the pups.

The absolute best tactic is to have a friend start a lowbie frog with you, or two box. Then, when you are both level 2, you can tackle the roaming pups (dangerous) or just walk up to the right hand camp. There are two static solo spawns of pups that you can kill til 3, and then at 3 the two of you can add in the double spawn. This will carry you to 5 or 6, when you can move to the slightly tougher kobolds next to it.

Believe it or not, the respawn is almost exaclty in tune with what a duo is able to kill. The problem with this is... that leaves NO ONE killing the wandering pups, which is how there can be so many of them in the valley. So, new frogs are forced to use level 30 tactics to survive the newbie field. There is no way to even compare this is Newport. Given the location of the translocator, even with assistance there is a very low chance of being able to leave Sundered.

I see this as designed in feature. For some reason, the froglok race has a few true froglok adherents, such as myself, which lament only the lack of class choice about our noble race. It also seems the natural choice for every jackmunch that wants a character to be a jackmunch with and name it Kermit, Froak, or Kermitthefroak.

The result is that the true adherents stick with it no matter what, while the jackmunches give up and never bother anyone.

PS... while I know the answer is no, I must ask. Is there any way that Mage or Necro can be added to the froglok class choice? Even if there were no trianer NPCs and we could not buy our non shared spells until we relocated (or used the mail system)? I know it is a technical limitation placed by the SOE dogs =(

Would there happen to be any froglok illusion devices useable by a mage or necro?
 
I will have to start saving my cash, I happen to like the gukfrog image.

Anyone got a name of said item or a general idea of how much PP I am going to need to save up?
 
Actually I misread that. There's an enchanter illusion that is a guk (live) frog, and there's an item that is fame points only called Melwin's Idol of Joy that is an undead froglok.
 
rab said:
Actually I misread that. There's an enchanter illusion that is a guk (live) frog, and there's an item that is fame points only called Melwin's Idol of Joy that is an undead froglok.
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Uh, actually, Melwin's Idol of Joy has been dropping in Mielech C since day one of the zone going in several years ago.
 
moghedancarns said:
Before level 5 or more, characters are simply not equiped or able to enact manuvers like pulling to the wall. We are forced to enguage where the mobs are.
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This simply is not the case, unless you mean in that specific zone because I have not been there myself. My level 2 druid (or about there, less than 5 for sure) was using the pull to wall tatic to great effects in CH with the bugs, which are also social.

If you're a spell casting class, cast a spell from farther away from the mob and run like hell (note, you can turn while casting a spell to line up your run). If you aren't a caster, by level 2 you should have enough to buy atleast a handful of ranged items (throwing probably, because you won't need to sink money into a bow) and use that to aggro mobs at a distance.

moghedancarns said:
Given the location of the translocator, even with assistance there is a very low chance of being able to leave Sundered.
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I honestly see this as a designed feature so that newbie frogs can't bum 2 plat from someone and hop over to Newport, ignoring the brand new zone that is right infront of them. This however, is just my opinion.
 
Sundered Mountains is pretty hard... Is there a postmaster in Sadri Malath? I've been trying to get my froglock out of sundered for awhile but it's taking along time to save up to 2pp and I want to send something over to sell for 2pp but I can't find a postmaster! So basically my question is... Is there a postmaster in Sadri Malath?
 
Why even bother staying in the froglock town if it is so difficult and people are so scarce? I was able to work my way from the froglock town to Freeport, then catch the boat to Newport without problem. Sure there are baddies in the zones, but there is nothing in the water, swim to FP. When you arrive, go through the hidden passages and avoid the town proper. It isn't that amazingly tough but I don't think you'll be able to do any of your class quests until you return. I personally took my froglock to Newport, and leveled him up there, centuar hills, and Blackburrow since I didn't find any quests to be had from my GMs in Malath. Don't get me wrong, don't just cast the froglock area out and leave it if you don't want to. I just found that it was much easier to group with my buddies in Newport, than in Malath. Friends make the game shine, the content makes it interesting.
 
Yes sure, you could abandon your starting newbie area for Newport. Many people do. I haven't started anyone in Grobb yet, but the plaintive cries of the newbies just starting on SoD "there's nothing here to kill!" echo through /ooc every day.

Ideally, each newbie area should be equal in appeal to a starting character. Nobody should feel that a half-hour trip to Newport to level from 1-5 is faster than leveling in their starting area.
 
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