The Totally NEW Team Corwin Thread

Like sand in my crotch, so are the days of our lives. In today's episode...

OK, the internet seems to be stable now. I even took the crazy chance and had them fix my level of service back to 3Mb instead of the 1Mb I got following the most recent "reboot". We seem to be on a proper footing there.

The video card they put in last week is crap. They replaced my 8600GTS (which turns out, statistically speaking, to be a hell of a great card for being 3+ years old) with an 8400GS. They wanted to keep the service call inexpensive and quick; that was the closest thing they had on the shelf. Upon questioning, the tech told me that increasing from 256Mb digital RAM to 512 would blunt the step backwards. He was wrong. Jo and I did a little run in Reavers a few days ago and it was a complete slideshow, particularly on that snowy map. Basically unplayable, even at very low settings. If you actually start comparing stats on the 8400GS vs my old 8600GTS, it's actually not a big surprise. Oh yippee.

But!!! The repair shop has agree to give me full credit on the 8400 and I conned them into ordering me a 450GTS (based on my research, looks like a fairly decent card for the budget-conscious) to put in its place. Should be good clean living there. The new card is a doublewide and a bit of a power hog, so I'm a little nervous, but if you've ever seen the case and power supply for a Dell 720XPS you probably don't share my concerns. AND, barring further disaster, the card will be available Friday and they'll do the install while I wait.

So, in summary, I just might be back in the saddle with a functional system. Finally.
 
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Wow, I just replaced my old 8800 card a couple of weeks ago with something better and I haven't had a BSoD since, so here's hoping. I'll miss you all this week, so don't leave me too far behind!! :)
 
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:rotfl::paranoid: Good grief Dte.....Sorry for laughing but this has really taken on a life of it's own. :fingerscrossed: Hoping you do get it sorted. Your withdrawl has to be worse then mine is right now. ;)
 
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I can't imagine they would offer you a 8400GS. It can barely run windows and certainly not any games. The card is sold in Norway for $40 and it's probably cheaper in USA.

Look here for the performance comparisons:
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/

8400 GS: 159
8600 GTS: 522
8800 GT: 944
450 GTS: 1440
ATI 5970 (my card): 2595

The good news for you is that the 450 GTS seems to be a very good and fast card without being too expensive. So I'm sure you can run DDO at full fps.

People complain that Peter the paladin is running too fast for you in DDO. Maybe the reason is my graphics card. :)
 
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I was able to run at 1920x1200 on "high" with the 8600GTS with no problems to speak of, so this new card should be more than adequate. With my rig approaching 4 years old, it's likely that I'll have a bottleneck elsewhere (most likely, the 2GB of RAM) before the new card taps out.

I'm just curious what's going to go wrong for me this week. Chipmunks chew thru the underground power lines, leaving me without electricity for 2 weeks? Car accident on the way home from the computer shop and my rig goes flying thru the windshield? FBI makes a mistake on an address and raids my house?
 
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Well I got a good card for this old rig. Not great but it seems able to run everything without problems. I put an ATI 4350 in it. Didn't want to spend money on a rig that is 5yrs old and hopefully I can replace in the next week or so. But if I have to hang on to it I can take the card back and get a better one and maybe a new monitor.

Now Dte, if they do raid the house, grab some sort of Vaseline product asap while you are locked in the bathroom. Just trying to help in case they don't believe you when you show them your ID. ;)
 
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Ok, got my 1750 in total favor. Just to let you know, when you do, you get offered a +2 tome.
 
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Cool. I pulled a +2 tome in DQ Saturday, but since I've bought +2's for everyone from the store, I put it up for roll. Made a WF monk very happy, and his Drow Bard wife somewhat less happy, since I sent it to him on a tied roll. :p

Found out afterward that they were husband and wife, from one of their guildies who was also in the run.

Don't EVER use UPS for shipping. I just got my card and PSU in today. They delivered it to a neighbor, DESPITE the large letters on the tree right by the road denoting which house was the correct address. I've since complained to both Newegg and the BBB.
 
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Skype did an update this pm so if you see this before the game you need to shut skype off and reopen for the update.
 
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Thanks, just did that, so now we'll see if mine updates!! :)
 
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Update 9 News

1: Sorcerer is getting the new Elemental Savant lines, one for each of the four classic elements (Fire, Ice, Electrical, Acid). Not much has been revealed about that PrE however. Expect the first two tiers to be implemented, and for it to boost damage output of a Sorcerer in their chosen element, while weakening the others.

2: Favored Soul is getting the first two tiers of the Angel of Vengeance PrE.

Code:
Favored Soul Angel of Vengeance I
Prereqs: Level 6 Favored Soul, Favored Soul Smiting II, Favored Soul Energy of the Scion II, and any one of the following: Empower Spell, Maximize Spell, Heighten Spell, Spell Focus: Conjuration, or Spell Focus: Evocation
Cost: 4 AP
Benefit: The only thing stronger than your faith is the fire you use to burn away those who stand against the will of the gods. Enemies that strike you have a chance of suffering divine condemnation rendering them vulnerable to divine attacks, and you project a 15 meter Aura of Menace, decreasing the saving throws, attack, and armor class of nearby enemies by 2. You deal 20% additional damage with spells that deal fire, physical, or untyped damage, and can name an ally your 'Champion', transferring your shield of condemnation to them and damaging opponents that strike them in melee.

    Shield of Condemnation
    Benefit: Enemies that strike you have a chance of suffering divine condemnation, increasing their vulnerability to light and alignment-based damage by 20%, and decreasing their fortification by 10%. This debuff stacks up to 5 times, and is dispelled by Bless effects.

    Name Champion
    Benefit: You name an ally your Champion. Several Angel of Vengeance abilities target your Champion. You can only have one Champion at a time, and it must be another player or a hireling in your party, or a monster which you have personally summoned.

    Crown of Retribution
    Benefit: You transfer your Shield of Condemnation to your Champion as long as they remain within your Aura of Menace. Enemies that strike your Champion while this is active also take 1d8+1 points of light damage from your divine wrath.

The primary benefits seem to be the Aura, which essentially gives a +2 to-hit and +2 spell DC vs critters in the Aura's range. That alone makes it a strong contender for the Melee FvS builds. Blade Barrier (among other Divine offensive spells) getting 20% more damage makes it even stronger. Since Maximize is almost always taken by good FvS, there's only a minimal cost of 6AP to qualify.

3 Crafting:

A new crafting system is being introduced, which mirrors one developed in a thread on the suggestions forum that I participated in last year. It will be rolled out over the course of several updates, as it is a HUGE change, and effectively gives a crafting option to all level characters.

The gist of it is that there will be three crafting skills you can level up in now. You'll be able to deconstruct random items, getting an essence from each one, and then craft those essences onto a new item. For example, I could take my Holy Falchion, and pull the Holy off of it, pull the Greater Evil Outsider Bane off another weapon, and pull Metalline off of another, and pull a +5 Falchion, and combine them all to make a +5 Holy Metalline Falchion of GEOB.

Of course, things may be more restricted than that, or maybe not. It may be possible to craft items otherwise impossible to find (Sup Pot VI Robe of the Magi anyone?) or shift enchantments to odd slots in order to wear other stuff (Greater Parrying on a ring would be nice for an AC build).

This change will give value to many of the junk items we dump cheaply on the AH and vendors, and make it easier to get boss beaters for our characters, without grinding Shroud or buying plat to pay the million or so they cost on the AH. On the other hand, expect it to make existing gear on the AH inflate in value, particularly basic +5 weapons and armor, and valuable enchantments such as Sup Potency or greater banes.

4: New Challenge system

Crystal Cove previewed a new challenge system mechanic, where the quests can be scaled from levels 1-25. New quests using this system won't be coming in in U9, but will later.

5: New adventure pack

A level 15 horror-themed adventure pack featuring things that mess with your mind coming out of Xoriat. Reportedly, WotC greenlit some new critters as well.

6: A new House Ward will be built in Stormreach, expanding the visitable areas of the city once more. Possibly House Thrashk(Half-Orc & Human) or Lyrandar (Half-Elf).

7: Slated to drop in April.

Note: PrE's may change between now and release, and exact details for the new crafting system are unknown.
 
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More U9 news:

Spell revision coming! DOOOOOM!

Finger of Death now apparently does damage on a failed save. Spell point costs have apparently been revamped due to the fact the casters (particularly arcanes) could not come close to matching a melee in sustained dps, due to the high costs of damage spells. This was known as coming, as basically the only offensive spells that were widely used were damage over time spells like Blade Barrier or Firewall. Single target spells are generally regarded as less than useful, due to their costs and low total damage. Why cast a Frost Lance when a Fireball does similar damage and hits everything; at the same cost?

From the DDO Forums said:
With polar ray being 8th level it's possible that costs are 1 1st, 3 2nd, 5 3rd, 7 4th, 9 5th, 11 6th, 13 7th, 15 8th, 17 9th.

There are also hints about the tier II Angel of Vengeance PrE. Apparently, if the decoding is correct, you will be able to summon an Archon. Or a Badger with lasers. It isn't clear which. It also improves the Aura and grants an un-decoded % bonus to untyped, fire, and physical damage spells (like Cometfall, Firestorm, and Blade Barrier). I'd assume 10%, though since there's no enhancement line, maybe even 20%.
 
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Sounding better for casters and everyone knows I need ALL the help I can get!! :)
 
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Favored Souls will be able to summon a Lantern Archon at tier II of the AoV PrE. This critter hovers above the AoV's shoulder, attacking the weakest, non-held critter in sight, transferring aggro to the FvS, and is indestructible. It also acts as a light source (Rainbow in the Dark run anyone?). It's main attack it a light beam, which is enhanced by the smiting enhancements of the FvS and it appears that it acts like the Pale Masters' summoned undead, and does not lock out a regular summons.

Instead, it acts like a Familiar.

U9 = Caster love.

The PrE does increase the damage of the "dps" spells by an additional x% (probably 10), but not the light/alignment spells (which Divines have an enhancement line for). The Aura also is upgraded to reduce Spell Resistance, meaning supporting offensive casters get an effective +2 to Spell Pen as well as +2 DC to all spells vs creatures caught in the FvS' aura.
 
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Oh well, guess I'll have to wait for U10 for anything useful. ;)
 
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Hey folks, got a question. I'm going to continue running Wouldii thru Bloodstone runs for a bit longer, at least until he gets to 3000 gnoll and undead slayer, but I'm wondering if I'm missing out. Are there other outdoor areas I should be farming instead? Gianthold is next up level-wise, but I don't remember any cool loot associated with the rares in there (aside from the runes, which don't actually do me any good) and it takes forever to build up slayers. Necro 4 (y'all collected the tapestries for his Minos already) perhaps? Don't really think he's ready to run Meridia solo yet, but maybe? He's made pretty good progress thru Red Fens already.

Phuury's been thru all those, but it seems like most of the time we're just pulling the XP from explorers and rares rather than actively seeking named items. Just don't remember enough to decide what Wouldii should be doing.
 
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He should actually be running with some of my many lower level chars to help raise their levels!! :)
 
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