I started asked Liam some questions after annoying him for a bit, which turned out to seem to answer a lot of questions I see new players having. I decided to write them all down and post them in case anyone else was interested in reading these.
The first one is with Liam, and the second is with Melwin.
_____________________________________________________
How long have you been a GM?
Off and on for 2 years now. Wiz hasn't ever fired me, so I just come back and forth whenever I feel like it really.
What all does it include?
Ehh, mostly handle petitions and whatever work needs to be done as dolled out by Wiz. DB filling, items, zone creation, npc's, crap like that. I'm writing Lore atm though.
What tools do you use to work on all that?
MySQL and a handy SQL editor designed by the EQemu guys for just these types of problems.
So this isn't the main EQ Emulation project?
Nah, not at all. We're very loosely affiliated with them. We use an outdated version of their software.
Why not upgrade?
Huge hassle. Wiz is comfortable with this version, and he's already implemented months (if not years) of work into it. There's just too much stuff stacked on top of it to update versions.
There are servers where they allow all players to use GM commands. Do you think these are any fun?
It's just people messing around. I imagine some guilds used it as practice or something, I dunno.
How often are raids?
Raids happen daily, actually. Ruin and Pheonix Rising are the two guilds who do it. There's a group of 65's who do it as well.
Are most of the high end raid zones in?
There's more to be added, for sure, but there are tons of high end encounters out there.
Is the loot the same as live?
Nope. We weren't joking when we said it's 100% custom.
______________________________________________________
How long have you been working on WR?
Two and a half years. Those six months are part of the reason I'm known as the lazy GM. I knew what working one of Wiz's startup projects meant
What kind of work do you do?
Mostly administrative, with a side order of website management and clerk work when I feel like it.
What tools do you mostly use for administrative tasks?
IRC. Administrative things are stuff like handling general server disruption, hiring staffers, setting up things like the quest team, etc. You could probably say I'm the head of HR and PR, if we actually had departments.
What major differences were made from WR to fix all the imbalances from EQLive?
Jeesh, long list. The major thing is probably that crowd control is actually useful and that monks are the primary pullers again. Lack of Fading Memories for bards and overpowered Pacify for a variety of other classes means FD pulling is pretty necessary. Wizards also get very decent sustained DPS on WR, as opposed to the sheer burst DPS on Live. Monks are very decent DPS, on par with rangers, and are also very decent tanks. Mage pets also use the mage's AAs on WR
Is WR basically just EQ but with zones and NPCs changed?
No, not at all. These days, WR is maybe 30% like EQLive. We've rebalanced so many small and big things over the years. The client is obviously the same, but for legal reasons, we can't edit the client, or we would. Maybe one day we'll make our own, haha
I know legality is something often debated. How would you summarize WR's legal stance?
We don't use any proprietary code. Every line is hand-written by us or the EQEmu team. The fact that it happens to interact with the EQ client is legally completely irrelevant.
What would you like changed in WR the most?
Less sensitive players. I like swearing.
Where do you see WR in a year?
Hard to say. We've ballooned up a lot in the last four-five months. A rough 100% playerbase increase over the past six, probably. Update wise we're just going to keep churning out things whether people like it or not. That's not to say we don't listen to players, because we do, but we don't listen to players arbitrarily. SOE ignores all player commentary, pretty much, whether it's good or bad. We just ignore the shitty commentary.
What has been the biggest challenge for you or the WR team?
I don't know if we've had any challenges, really. It's been very progressive and flat. Way back when we weren't pretty much the definitive EQEmu server, there was this other server. It was called Guild Wars, and we didn't get along on any level.
I just recently saw Liam's zone. Is this the first time WR has added a custom zone?
That's just Homogenn screwing around. But yes.
Is there any chance of custom zones getting added as a feature in WR?
Custom zones are my next project, but I'm up to my ears in the newly established quest team as it is. We're not sure if we're going to implement these, however. Gotta talk to Wiz about it.
How large is the WR team right now?
http://wintersroar.com/staff.html
Not listed are our trainees, Zipher and Rabb, and of course the quest team consisting of Leokaiser, killspree, Xikzasil, Ssikaz (I can never remember his name) and Siquros.They'll be listed when they "graduate" to full GM and full QD, respectively.
So these are the people adding quests to WR?
In addition to everyone else, yes. Normal GMs are free to make quests as well. QDs have a requirement of one per week.
Are you planning on following the traditional Everquest quest system, or implementing something more original?
We are, unfortunately, quite limited by the client. But we add original aspects when we can. Once we expand our quest engine a bit, quests should become a viable supplement to constant grinding.
How much story line is in WR already?
A very small part of the lore is currently in game, but "behind the scenes" it all makes sense in a greater picture.
Can you briefly explain the story line of WR?
No. Aside from "Kaezul rises, takes over Kunark, owns oldworld, refugees hide on Erudin then take oldworld back" I can't tell you anything. Wany and I are the only ones who know anything beyond that, and it's strictly secret, but it's pretty good. Well, and Wiz, obviously
Is it mostly completed?
It's not in the game, no, but it's completed. Has been since the beginning. The beauty of WR's lore is that it all kind of ties together.
Is following a story line going to be optional, or are you going to make it very significant to gameplay?
When things come to a head, you probably won't have a choice. But that's a long time off for when WR starts to decline and we can see the end on the horizon. Better to burn out than to fade away.
What would you say was the biggest mistake of the EQLive team?
Luclin started them down on a terrible slippery slope, and instead of slowing down and getting back up they just decided to run with it. Making expansions beyond PoP was also a terrible idea. One of our ex-staffers was a Beta Phase 1 lore tester and had access to all the original lore. They actually had everything up to PoP written up, except for dumb shit like Quarm, which is no doubt why everything after PoP feels so tacked on. Letting McQuaid go was another mistake. Back when I was active on the Sigil boards (member #89 woohoo) before they released the Vanguard name, I had some chances to talk to him and he's pretty brilliant.
Do you think WR has any possiblity of being bought and/or supported by an actual company?
I think there's a possibility, but unless we were given some very agreeable conditions, I know I'd fight it tooth and nail. Selling out' is a negative term for a reason.
Is there anything else you'd like to add?
TREANTS ARE JERKS
Thanks again you two for your time
The first one is with Liam, and the second is with Melwin.
_____________________________________________________
How long have you been a GM?
Off and on for 2 years now. Wiz hasn't ever fired me, so I just come back and forth whenever I feel like it really.
What all does it include?
Ehh, mostly handle petitions and whatever work needs to be done as dolled out by Wiz. DB filling, items, zone creation, npc's, crap like that. I'm writing Lore atm though.
What tools do you use to work on all that?
MySQL and a handy SQL editor designed by the EQemu guys for just these types of problems.
So this isn't the main EQ Emulation project?
Nah, not at all. We're very loosely affiliated with them. We use an outdated version of their software.
Why not upgrade?
Huge hassle. Wiz is comfortable with this version, and he's already implemented months (if not years) of work into it. There's just too much stuff stacked on top of it to update versions.
There are servers where they allow all players to use GM commands. Do you think these are any fun?
It's just people messing around. I imagine some guilds used it as practice or something, I dunno.
How often are raids?
Raids happen daily, actually. Ruin and Pheonix Rising are the two guilds who do it. There's a group of 65's who do it as well.
Are most of the high end raid zones in?
There's more to be added, for sure, but there are tons of high end encounters out there.
Is the loot the same as live?
Nope. We weren't joking when we said it's 100% custom.
______________________________________________________
How long have you been working on WR?
Two and a half years. Those six months are part of the reason I'm known as the lazy GM. I knew what working one of Wiz's startup projects meant
What kind of work do you do?
Mostly administrative, with a side order of website management and clerk work when I feel like it.
What tools do you mostly use for administrative tasks?
IRC. Administrative things are stuff like handling general server disruption, hiring staffers, setting up things like the quest team, etc. You could probably say I'm the head of HR and PR, if we actually had departments.
What major differences were made from WR to fix all the imbalances from EQLive?
Jeesh, long list. The major thing is probably that crowd control is actually useful and that monks are the primary pullers again. Lack of Fading Memories for bards and overpowered Pacify for a variety of other classes means FD pulling is pretty necessary. Wizards also get very decent sustained DPS on WR, as opposed to the sheer burst DPS on Live. Monks are very decent DPS, on par with rangers, and are also very decent tanks. Mage pets also use the mage's AAs on WR
Is WR basically just EQ but with zones and NPCs changed?
No, not at all. These days, WR is maybe 30% like EQLive. We've rebalanced so many small and big things over the years. The client is obviously the same, but for legal reasons, we can't edit the client, or we would. Maybe one day we'll make our own, haha
I know legality is something often debated. How would you summarize WR's legal stance?
We don't use any proprietary code. Every line is hand-written by us or the EQEmu team. The fact that it happens to interact with the EQ client is legally completely irrelevant.
What would you like changed in WR the most?
Less sensitive players. I like swearing.
Where do you see WR in a year?
Hard to say. We've ballooned up a lot in the last four-five months. A rough 100% playerbase increase over the past six, probably. Update wise we're just going to keep churning out things whether people like it or not. That's not to say we don't listen to players, because we do, but we don't listen to players arbitrarily. SOE ignores all player commentary, pretty much, whether it's good or bad. We just ignore the shitty commentary.
What has been the biggest challenge for you or the WR team?
I don't know if we've had any challenges, really. It's been very progressive and flat. Way back when we weren't pretty much the definitive EQEmu server, there was this other server. It was called Guild Wars, and we didn't get along on any level.
I just recently saw Liam's zone. Is this the first time WR has added a custom zone?
That's just Homogenn screwing around. But yes.
Is there any chance of custom zones getting added as a feature in WR?
Custom zones are my next project, but I'm up to my ears in the newly established quest team as it is. We're not sure if we're going to implement these, however. Gotta talk to Wiz about it.
How large is the WR team right now?
http://wintersroar.com/staff.html
Not listed are our trainees, Zipher and Rabb, and of course the quest team consisting of Leokaiser, killspree, Xikzasil, Ssikaz (I can never remember his name) and Siquros.They'll be listed when they "graduate" to full GM and full QD, respectively.
So these are the people adding quests to WR?
In addition to everyone else, yes. Normal GMs are free to make quests as well. QDs have a requirement of one per week.
Are you planning on following the traditional Everquest quest system, or implementing something more original?
We are, unfortunately, quite limited by the client. But we add original aspects when we can. Once we expand our quest engine a bit, quests should become a viable supplement to constant grinding.
How much story line is in WR already?
A very small part of the lore is currently in game, but "behind the scenes" it all makes sense in a greater picture.
Can you briefly explain the story line of WR?
No. Aside from "Kaezul rises, takes over Kunark, owns oldworld, refugees hide on Erudin then take oldworld back" I can't tell you anything. Wany and I are the only ones who know anything beyond that, and it's strictly secret, but it's pretty good. Well, and Wiz, obviously
Is it mostly completed?
It's not in the game, no, but it's completed. Has been since the beginning. The beauty of WR's lore is that it all kind of ties together.
Is following a story line going to be optional, or are you going to make it very significant to gameplay?
When things come to a head, you probably won't have a choice. But that's a long time off for when WR starts to decline and we can see the end on the horizon. Better to burn out than to fade away.
What would you say was the biggest mistake of the EQLive team?
Luclin started them down on a terrible slippery slope, and instead of slowing down and getting back up they just decided to run with it. Making expansions beyond PoP was also a terrible idea. One of our ex-staffers was a Beta Phase 1 lore tester and had access to all the original lore. They actually had everything up to PoP written up, except for dumb shit like Quarm, which is no doubt why everything after PoP feels so tacked on. Letting McQuaid go was another mistake. Back when I was active on the Sigil boards (member #89 woohoo) before they released the Vanguard name, I had some chances to talk to him and he's pretty brilliant.
Do you think WR has any possiblity of being bought and/or supported by an actual company?
I think there's a possibility, but unless we were given some very agreeable conditions, I know I'd fight it tooth and nail. Selling out' is a negative term for a reason.
Is there anything else you'd like to add?
TREANTS ARE JERKS
Thanks again you two for your time
