[Changes to Kael]

Changes to Kael

NPC changes:

- All NPCs in the zone have had their HP reduced. Regular trash HP is reduced around 30%, while some bosses have been reduced from in the range of 30-50%.
- NPCs have also had their damage reduced quite a bit. Should now on average hit around 900k more than the upper VP trash mobs.
- Ragnar got a script adjustment to align with the new damage profile.
- Spawn chances of certain named have been reduced.

Quest changes:

- The Fury of the Giants, down from 350 to 250 kills per faction.
- Improvements!, all task counts reduced from 3 to 2.
- Ultimate Charm v5, reduced shard count to complete quest from 80 to 40 shards.
- A Cold Bargain, reduced from 30 to 9 task counts to complete.
- Translocation quest reduced to 200 kills.

Loot changes:

General changes: some of the named NPCs in the zone have had their overall loot adjusted to be more worth going for if they spawn.

- Tier armor and components have been made more common.
- Roxy's coins does in some cases drop in a larger quantity.
- Slight increase overall in essence drops.
- Increased chances for spells to drop.
- Increased chances for Mechi shield components to drop

[Kael revisited]

Kael revisited

It’s been about a year since Kael Drakkel, Tier 11, launched. This tier was a bit of a turning point compared to the ones before it. We wanted to create an experience where players needed to think more strategically and take precautions. The feedback we’d received was that some of the previous content felt too mindless, so we aimed to shake things up. Kael was designed with fewer mobs per encounter, but each NPC posed a bigger threat and took longer to kill. 

While we think Kael in many ways as a tier is solid, balancing it for the diverse playstyles and box setups on EZ has proven to be a real challenge. Even with the adjustments we’ve made so far, we’re still hearing that some players avoid the zone due to its difficulty and the time commitment required to complete it. With such a wide variety of player preferences, finding a balance that works for everyone in a single iteration just isn’t realistic. That’s why we believe introducing a Normal/Hard mode system in future tiers makes much more sense than trying to create one-size-fits-all content. 

Kael will, in many ways, mark the end of our old approach to zone design. The plan is to scale Kael down—both in difficulty and in the time it takes to progress through it—while keeping it slightly harder than the tiers that came before. Future tiers will feature the Normal/Hard mode system, giving players the freedom to choose their preferred challenge level and more control over how they engage with the content. Balancing tiers has always been one of the toughest challenges for us devs, given the variety of box setups and playstyles on EZ. We’re confident that the Normal/Hard mode approach will make the game more enjoyable for everyone.


Planned Adjustments to Kael

 - NPC health pools
 - NPC damage output
 - Spawn and drop rates
 - Time required to complete quests and attunements
 - Script adjustments-- to make certain mechanics more forgiving 

There could be other tweaks as well. A complete changelog will be posted once the update is finalized. 

Why Not Add Normal/Hard Mode to Kael? 

You might wonder why we’re not adding a Normal/Hard mode to Kael itself. The truth is, while we did discuss it, retrofitting that kind of system into a zone that wasn’t originally designed for it would be a massive undertaking. We believe our time is better spent on other improvements and future content. 

So, Kael will remain a transitional tier, a stepping stone that marks the end of our old approach to balancing content for everyone in one go. We’ve come to realize that it’s impossible to meet the needs of all playstyles with a single design, and the Normal/Hard mode system will help us move forward and giving you all a more flexible way of playing on EZ with a player-driven approach that Normal/Hard mode gives you.

We understand that there will be mixed feelings about this change for Kael, but we're also sure that the direction forward will provide a more meaningful experience for everyone, regardless of how you want to meet the content.

Thanks again for sticking around and making EZ the great place it is!


For Akkadius & Draca,

-Sarthin
EZ Admin Team

Done

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Halloween events are running now through 2-3rdish of January. Have a happy holiday everyone!


Housegarden halloween zone is available once again, and remember the new command to increase aggro range in Hills of Shade is '/say increase aggro range' , as well as zone pulls work again in Hills of Shade.
If there is ANY griefing as it relates to zone pulling, it will be removed again.

For Akkadius & Draca,
        -Sarthin
              EZ Admin Team

Halloween Event  -   OPEN

You have unwittingly opened the time rift and allowed me to enter your domain. I should thank you for this, but you are just a simple fool and knew not what your actions would bring. Do you know now what time it is? It is time for me to make an example of you for all this world to witness. Your lifeless corpse will hang from stakes, a reminder of how easily I can sweep your world's inhabitants aside.



"The disciples of Nexus report it has been engulfed in darkness and a spell has been casted upon it.
Meanwhile a strange rift has appeared..."

where do i get/how do i update hohonora_chr.txt???

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Icm9dh2EDmtfzOqEZ6iEWuq7XSenp4uh?q=parent:1Icm9dh2EDmtfzOqEZ6iEWuq7XSenp4uh%20after:2024-10-11

[PS: You will need to update your hohonora_chr.txt before you can view the T3 boss models in HoH.]

Halls of Honor update

To make gearing for T3 and T4 more engaging, less repetitive and to smooth out the randomness of it, we've introduced new mechanics in Halls of Honor beyond simply collecting tokens and summoning bosses in Airplane.

First, rest assured that Airplane remains unchanged: you can still use uncombined tokens to spawn T3 bosses and combined tokens to summon T4 bosses as usual. Token drop rate in HoH also remains the same as always.

In Halls of Honor we’ve introduced the T3 bosses from Airplane. Now, there’s a chance for trash mobs to trigger a shake and emote, followed by a T3 boss spawning. These bosses use the same loot tables as the token-spawned T3 bosses in Airplane. Some types of NPCs in Halls of Honor will spawn particular T3 bosses, while others may summon one at random. Note that T4 bosses will not spawn in Halls of Honor, and that the T3 bosses share the same difficulty as those in Airplane with adds spawning and what not.

The changes will go live once Draca has time to push the changes over to prod.

PS: You will need to update your hohonora_chr.txt before you can view the T3 boss models in HoH.

;DNECRO REZZING AN OLD POST FOR THE HECK OF IT! 

Who doesn't like a good old drama?

Tier 11 Enchanter pet won't equip UW.

Improved Group Vitality buff lasts 30 min less than the cooldown (on casting toon only).

A Cold Bargain quest handins:

Glacierbound Pelt updates Crystalized Frostbloom
Crystalized Frostbloom updates Northern Lights
Northern Lights updates Glacierbound Pelt

I will have a look at these this weekend. Thanks Denzig.

Edit:

- I didn't have any issues getting Enchanter's pet to equip UW. Going to need more info on this.
- Improved Group Vitality has gotten the recast delay reduced to 2 hours.

Guild Leader: Neto
Guild Name: Gosan's Geeks

Done

Finally getting some spells to drop.   

The Neco dots, incisor V and pyre V.  Previous ranks of these were able to be spread to other mobs by Epidemic the kael ones do not seem to spread.   Is this expected behavior?

Cleric Armor of the Crab IV vs III is only an increase of 45AC, no additional HP.  Is that correct?   At our numbers does 45AC actually do anything?

Still missing lots, would be nice to be able to exchange rotting spells or add them to the weapon rot turn in.

The necro DoTs were not added to Epidemic, so works as intended. Regarding AC, you would not notice any difference at current levels.

I'm not sure what happened with Crab IV. I just checked the logs and I see I had it set at higher HP initially, but Draca has changed it down to match rank 3 a while back.

[Updates]

Updates

So we've had Kael running for 5 months now and like Draca noted in his previous post, we understand that Kael has felt overtuned for some of you. There have also been valid conserns about some spawn chances and the rewards for killing certain bosses. Draca and I have made a series of adjustments today, pending a push to live. Here are some of the adjustments we've made:

[Tasks]
- Changed enraged quest kill task from 500 to 350.
- Less kills needed for the Mechi shield task.
- Decreased the amount of armor mold rots needed to complete the Ultimate Augment task.

[Database]
- Decreased the overall hit points and damage of all NPCs in Kael.

[Item and spawn chances]
- Increased drop rates on armor and armor mats.
- Increased relic drop chance from some sources.
- Slightly increased the spawn rates on Thalassa, Fenris and Draikon.
- Removed the knockback effect from Kael trash NPC's spells.
- Increased GSoA drop chances on some NPC's.
- Adjusted drop rates on several items for the 4 bosses, including spells.
- Increased the chance for good rewards off the Avatar of War chain.
- Increased the initial spawn chain chance for the four bosses.

Ok, so the event is almost over for this time as I'm writing this. Hope you've had a good time.

We would appreciate if those of you that did Fear this event would leave some loot feedback here. We'd also like to know how much time you've spent in there on average over this event.

Thanks!

4th OF JULY EVENT!

Halloween Event  -   Running
Fear Itself - Open.
Double Loot  -  Running.
Double Exp.  -  Running.
Credits  - Closed.
Rallos Zek event  - Closed


Events will be available on EZ from today and until the 10th of July.

reserved

[EZ Server Rules]

EZ Server Rules

Updated May 2024

• No exploiting
• Don’t automate game actions while AFK.
• Macro and script use
• Server stability
• Warping
• MQ2
• Account sharing
• Real money transactions
• Language
• General conduct

NO EXPLOITING
Do not exploit any bugs or weaknesses in-game. If you happen to find a bug, it’s acceptable for you to try to replicate the bug once to confirm it and to provide as much information as possible to a GM.

If you discover a bug or glitch, please report it to a GM directly. Do not share the information with other players, especially if the bug gives an advantage. However, if the issue doesn't provide a benefit and your intention is to prevent other players from encountering the same problem, a warning is acceptable. For example, if you find a script bug with a quest NPC that deletes an item instead of upgrading it, you can warn others to avoid losing their items.

DON’T AUTOMATE GAME ACTIONS WHILE AFK
You have to be present at your computer and initiate manual pulls and attacks using hot keys. If you are AFK, it’s not acceptable for your characters to be in combat in any way. That means for example, but not limited to, that you are not allowed to park your character at a trivial NPC and let riposte do the kills for you in search of a named spawn while you are not at the computer.

Most of our in-game activity has to be done while actually being present at the computer. There are a few exceptions when it comes to certain actions that don’t provide experience, AAs, zone loot, boss/named spawns or task completion.

The exceptions are listed here:
- You may set up a macro that combines HoH tokens while you go grab a coffee. Same goes for handing in a hoard of rainbow crystals after an event. There will be no reimbursements for lost tokens or crystals due to a macro failing to act as it’s supposed to though.
- You may take a break while your characters are attacking a dummy in QRG either for DPS parsing or skill increases.
- It’s acceptable to take a break after a pull while your loot macro cleans up the corpses.

MACRO AND SCRIPT USE
EZServer permits the use of custom macros, and E3, but there are limitations. Please read the following rules carefully. If you're unsure whether your actions comply with the rules, stop and ask a GM for clarification.

1. Automation Restrictions:
 It is not acceptable to use pulling macros, scripts, or any other form of automation to path around the zone for purposes of pulling and killing NPCs, moving between bosses, or for convenience.
Scripting and automating zone/instance hopping and “body killing” NPCs are also prohibited.

Currently we do no allow the use of buff bots to buff other players automatically, other than the scripted in-game NPC. Players are not permitted to automate buffs on their own characters. This means that scripts running in the background to automatically buff your characters without additional input are not allowed. However, you can set up a hotkey to call a macro with a buff routine or include it in a combat spam macro. This means you need manual input EACH time you want to buff your characters

2. E3 Usage:
E3 is intended to assist you in multiboxing your characters, provided you are at the keyboard and in control of your characters.
This does not mean having a macro completely play the game for you. You must manually pull mobs and use hotkeys to have your characters assist and engage in combat. Manual input is required for EACH mob you kill in a pull. You are not allowed to set it up so you can make a pull of i.e. 10 mobs, hit a /cleartargets or similar command to make your characters fight automatically until all the mobs in the pull are dead.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you comply with all our regulations if you use E3. If anything is unclear to you, ask a GM or make a post here.

3. Scripts and Macros
The same rules apply as with the use of E3. You are allowed to make macros that assist you in your combat situation, where i.e. you make class specific macros that run through various combat routines like using a combat ability, casting a heal or a damage spell when it’s tied to a hotkey you’re pressing.
You may use macros to automate looting or selling items to a merchant. You may also use macros to combine recipes as part of an item upgrade in the Magic Box, i.e. Shield of the Ages.

4. Prohibited Macros and scripts:
You may not create a hotkey or macro that targets a mob, moves to its location, and engages in combat on your behalf. In combination with the script/macro use we allow, this can be abused and is not accepted.
You may not use scripts or other methods to set up GM alerts that disconnect you or disrupt illegal game actions when a GM enters your zone. If you just happen to go linkdead every time a GM enters the zone, you would be in violation of this rule.

SERVER STABILITY
Please ensure you do not cause excessive zone latency or server bandwidth usage. This can occur for example if you create multiple instances simultaneously, perform several zone pulls at once, split your characters across many different instances or repop a large amount of instances. To help prevent these issues, a script is in place: you must have a minimum of three characters in the same zone, or you will be disconnected and the zone is likely to reset. That said, it’s also your responsibility to make sure you don’t run commands or actions that enforces a heavy workload on the server.

WARPING
Certain MacroQuest plugins enable warping or ghosting, but using these features on EZServer is strictly prohibited. Our server monitors and flags accounts for warping, so please refrain from using them.

MQ2
The general recommendation is to use the EZServer Classic build from https://mqemulator.net/downloads.php. If you’re new to boxing and to using MQ2, this is a safe choice where you’re less likely to activate plugins that automate actions that are deemed unacceptable on the server.

Players are welcome to use other versions of MacroQuest, provided they do not use any plugins, scripts, or macros that violate our server rules. If you choose to use different versions, it is your responsibility to ensure that you comply with all our regulations.

DO NOT SHARE ACCOUNTS
Players that get banned have their accounts linked together by IP. If you allow someone to use your account and that person breaks the rules, then your account will be linked by IP and banned as well. You have been warned.

DO NOT SELL OR MAKE REAL MONEY TRADES (RMT)
Selling accounts, in-game services or items for actual real money currency is not allowed on EZ Server.  This includes buying, selling, trading, or giving away any money, items, or accounts. Anyone caught doing this will have the accounts banned and the items deleted. EZ Server is not responsible for any loss or damage incurred by unauthorized, player to player, transactions, or for any other reasons. This includes RMT trades for characters or credits. Those caught trying to sell their characters will have them banned/destroyed.

PROHIBITED LANGUAGE
Offensive language and conduct will not be tolerated on our server. This includes, but is not limited to:

- Sexual Content: Any sexually explicit or suggestive language or behavior.
- Racism: Any language or behavior that discriminates against or belittles individuals based on race or ethnicity.
- Hate Speech: Any speech that expresses hatred or encourages violence against a person or group based on attributes such as race, religion, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, or gender.
- Harassment: Any unwelcome behavior that demeans, humiliates, or intimidates people, either individually or as a group.
- Profanity: Excessive use of vulgar or obscene language.
- Inappropriate Names: Characters, guilds, pets, and any other in-game entities must not have names that are offensive or violate any of the aforementioned guidelines.

These rules apply to all public and private communications within the game, including chat channels, in-game mail, and any other form of interaction. Violations will result in disciplinary action, up to and including bans from the server.

SERVER CONDUCT RULES
- Spamming: Do not spam public chat channels.
- Trains: Do not intentionally lead groups of enemies to other players (training).
- Kill Stealing: Play fair. If you did not kill the mob, it is not yours to loot unless you have the owner's permission.
- Instances: You are not allowed to enter other players' private instances and start killing or looting without their explicit permission.
- Public Zones: Public zones are open to everyone. You cannot claim entire public zones if other players are present. If you want exclusive access, create a private instance. If a private instance is not possible, such as in Hills of Shade, you may zone pull as long as there are no other players in the realm. If you enter a realm and find another player already there, please find a new realm. If no realms are available and the player occupying the zone has been AFK for 5 minutes or more, you may consider the zone open and are free to pull (zone pull).
- Use common sense: The absence of a specific rule does not excuse inappropriate behavior. If your actions are deemed unacceptable, you will be held accountable. This includes trolling and general disruption of the community. If you try to ruin the game for others, you will be removed from the game. You will receive one warning to correct your behavior.

We reserve the right to add, amend, or remove any of these rules. It’s your responsibility to keep up to date with our ruleset. By adhering to these guidelines, you help maintain a fair and enjoyable gaming environment for everyone.

Thank You!