On Monday June 25th, Dungeons and Dragons Online, which was an Ebberon campaign based MMO, branched out boldly into a new expansion which takes adventurers into the Forgotten Realms. The expansion is aptly titled “Menace of the Underdark” and is filled with several goodies for high level characters, including Epic levels, new dungeons and explorer areas and a new raid. It also features a new path for classes levels 20 and over – the Epic Destiny line – which can really bring versatility to your character class.
I will try to set the tone in my tales of fun and adventure in this new realm, and include a few snap shots of my journey. My wizard Kalari who has experienced many things in the nearly six years I’ve played DDO can tell you that this new expansion lives up to all the promises made that it would blow your mind.
I started my journey by logging in to see the new UI changes. For me, a ugly UI can make or break a game that I play. I had issues before with leaving games because I did not like UI changes, but I was pleasantly surprised by the new look. Gone are the in-your-face bars for game options, these are now tucked into a little dragon circle so you can click up and see the social and option tabs. As you can see in this photo, my wizard has so many spell bars she needs all the help with room she can get!
After getting to grips with he new look, I went off in search of the “Fate spinner”, since as the level cap was no longer 20 I found out that I could twist my mage’s destiny. Epic Destinies are paths for characters level 20 and above, which give new skill trees for you to utilize that make you even more powerful. Coupled with the Enhancement system that we currently have, the Epic Destiny system looks like a great way to prepare those at higher levels for the challenges ahead, and believe you me there will be plenty of those!
Epic battles from the Underdark itself await you, and above is a shot of a battle in the spinners prison. This quest pits you against a high-powered Drow Priestess looking to free Lolth from her prison. In fact, the Drow are currently preparing for an all out war in Faerun. It’s up to you and your party to go forth into the Demon web and battle your way to Eveningstar and try your best to save the day.
However, more than just battles and mayhem await you. You may run into a local celebrity on your journeys to help Faerun. That is right, Elminster himself has come to lend a hand. The chosen Mage of Mystra is a very powerful being, who will aid you along your journeys. Next to my necromancer Kalari he makes me feel like a novice of magic indeed.
I journeyed out towards the King’s Forest, a huge explorer area, with my trusty Panther friend in tow (Panther pets are available to those who purchased the pre ordered expansion pack in the beta, and may not be available to those who buy the expansion now). I experienced a large lush landscape, full of interesting creatures from Giant Dire bears to little tiny squirrels. Unfortunately, Drow raiders lie in wait to ambush you and any other weary travelers trying to reach Eveningstar.Traveling through the forest will lead you towards the Underdark itself, another large area to explore, full of menacing creatures from Driders to Yuan-ti.
All in all, this expansion rates an A in my book, not just because I enjoy playing DDO, but because it adds a vast area with several paths to explore and new items to acquire. Just spinning your new Epic Destiny should be more than enough to keep those who like the end game aspect of MMO’s pretty busy, and Epic level quests now come in Normal, Hard and Elite modes(and Elite really takes power and skill to get through).
The game is not without its problems, there are some known issues and errors, but they are not so big that this expansion was not an enjoyable experience. So, if you are on Sarlona server and see Kalari running about in Lich form, send a wave hello and perhaps journey with me to the Underdark – there is much down there to explore.
I just had to get a picture of myself with Elminster as a wizard I dream of one day being as powerful as he is!
