ok i have to post this about the sigils of leveling,

i have a small corp (guild) in eve online and we decided to join DDO for our bipedal fix and to also have something different to do. so we use it as our relax game when no serious in eve. we are all old school D&D pen/paper players and that is how we are playing that game. we usually play together when eve is slow, or when we all agree, hey lets run a dungeon.

that said

we are 6 playing DDO and every one of those 6 characters (some have 2) so i would say 8-10 characters ALL GOT the 4-8 sigil at a random quest at about 1/4-1/2 way to lvl 4. EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER got it as a reward from a random quest, (the pattern is hard or elite mode mostly, i got both of mine doing elite quests in the harbor, friend got both of his in hard mode in the marketplace)

its a great game for a second MMO, and hell we are thinking of getting an adventure pack together. and expensive? with points you get in game and 6,25$ you can get a few adventure, that contains 8 dungeons (each in 3 modes).

this is not your normal MMO, the point of WoW or Aion or anyother main stream MMO is to lvl up. the point of D&D is to play.

and cmon! when you play D&D pen and paper you go and pay for a new adventure book with soem dungeons in it?! why would it be different? for the online version?

seriously guys, the old school D&D players will understand how this game is PLAYED, the new school 13 year olds who play WoW and LOTRO or any other MMO out there. this is a different gameplay. this is a game that you play to do the dungeons, not to get xp and gear.

i payed 20 bucks, got 5 mods and with the rest of the money i got leveling sigils for my two mains up to lvl 8. The thing that i'm seeing is that Turbine is throwing out deals every weekend, usually for adventure packs and leveling sigils. So if you don't find the sigils, you can find them dirt cheap during the sales. So just look out for the deals when if you want to pay money for points.

Originally posted by Squal'Zell

ok i have to post this about the sigils of leveling,

i have a small corp (guild) in eve online and we decided to join DDO for our bipedal fix and to also have something different to do. so we use it as our relax game when no serious in eve. we are all old school D&D pen/paper players and that is how we are playing that game. we usually play together when eve is slow, or when we all agree, hey lets run a dungeon.

that said

we are 6 playing DDO and every one of those 6 characters (some have 2) so i would say 8-10 characters ALL GOT the 4-8 sigil at a random quest at about 1/4-1/2 way to lvl 4. EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER got it as a reward from a random quest, (the pattern is hard or elite mode mostly, i got both of mine doing elite quests in the harbor, friend got both of his in hard mode in the marketplace)

its a great game for a second MMO, and hell we are thinking of getting an adventure pack together. and expensive? with points you get in game and 6,25$ you can get a few adventure, that contains 8 dungeons (each in 3 modes).

this is not your normal MMO, the point of WoW or Aion or anyother main stream MMO is to lvl up. the point of D&D is to play.

and cmon! when you play D&D pen and paper you go and pay for a new adventure book with soem dungeons in it?! why would it be different? for the online version?

seriously guys, the old school D&D players will understand how this game is PLAYED, the new school 13 year olds who play WoW and LOTRO or any other MMO out there. this is a different gameplay. this is a game that you play to do the dungeons, not to get xp and gear.

Totally agree.  I have levelled 6 characters to around 7/8 and everyone of them found a sigil before they hit a wall.  

A small correction:  any appropriate level quest with random rewards can offer a sigil.    Difficulty does not affect quest rewards, only in-dungeon loot. 

So far, just by playing the game, I have earned enough points to buy a few adventure packs.  And by playing those, I can earn even more.   In theory, you could grind all the points you want and never have to spend a dime for content.

However, I am enjoying the game so much I bought some points to add to what I'd earned and bought several packs, and still have a lot of points left to spend.

This game has had many QoL improvements since launch and I'm having a blast playing it.

Originally posted by page

Still level 3, was unable to play the last few days.

How many got the "free level 5 sigil " yet,  and is it only for level 5 or 5-8, ?

And if it's only for level 5 how hard is 6 to get ?

 

I got the Copper Sigil (lvl 4 to 8) from a Stormreach quest about stopping a kobold invasion. The quest is to kill 200 kobolds and its troglodyte boss. Can be done solo, may be hard but use your head and you will manage.

A friend of mine got to level 9 without paying a dime, it took some time for him to find the 8-12 sigil, but now he's good to go for 4 more levels. Me, on the other hand, chose the vip option and I have to say that the content is far, far better. Bought it from lvl 4, I'm now 11 and I have to say that Gianthold and Sands of Menechturen are a blast to play.

After you get all the adventure packs, you don't have to pay for anything, unless you want to pay for the leveling sigils and pay for all the junk that you really don't need

In a sense we can all blame ourselves for this, that is allowing the industry to coin a term "F2P" when it's really "Transaction Based" in scope. The thing is we all know what "F2P" in a mmo stands for, so there is no reason to play stupid here and think that actually means "everything is free to everyone, forever". We all know this, the faster we stop kidding ourselves and try to make some type of point here that is isn't truly free, the sooner we start moving away from this stupid discussions about something we already know. The only person that should be learning anything here, is a complete noob on this subject and yest that can happen. So everyone complaining about "not true F2P"? You are all noobs to this?

.

If you like it a lot, imo do yourself the favor an buy a month at a time so you don't have to sweat the small stuff about "what should I do and get?". If you're still wondering if you like it I can understand a little dabbling with the store at first or stay free for as long as you can as you figure it out. If you don't like it, but still play it and want it all for free, then your an internet whiner.

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If you can't afford it and are a kid, ask the parents what you can do for a few extra dollars, they'll be happy you asked. If you're an adult and can't afford it, you have bigger priorities.

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If you really like this game, it will give you way more back then the $15 your giving.

Originally posted by pyr0mancer

A friend of mine got to level 9 without paying a dime, it took some time for him to find the 8-12 sigil, but now he's good to go for 4 more levels. Me, on the other hand, chose the vip option and I have to say that the content is far, far better. Bought it from lvl 4, I'm now 11 and I have to say that Gianthold and Sands of Menechturen are a blast to play.

Yeah as much as we see threads, "but this one and that one, those are the best adventures to buy". It's very very nice to just have all the content. There is a lot and when I play my goal is to play it all at least once and that means through elite so that could equal 3 times. The content is the game and that is the way it should always be for any of these games. I've played many times when I couldn't get more XP to stay at a certain level for a longer time. IMO this is more what gaming should be, fun and not a race to something in our minds that really doesn't exist.

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I dream of LOTRO meets DDO some day. Wouldn't it be cool to have a wide open land, in the country you see a cave and it's as good as a killer DDO instance when you enter?. Do some country side killing and mining for that epic feel and community warmth. Come into town do your open mmo fare there, trade, craft, socialize etc, but also have several points in town that are like ddo quests. Like a warehouse that is under hostile control, gather a group and play a nicely thought out instance and not a generic mmo instance.

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It's like these two have to combine to finally make a complete mmo. I haven't played any instances that are as neat as DDO's. Traps and fighting model are the reasons why. DDO still has to figure out random traps though to slow zerging because everything is known, I always felt every update they should tweak every quest to place enemies at different places and different enemies in some places, move a trap here or there. To me you would think with an editor you can do something like that in short order, where not talking building reworking. That would slow some parties down and once again raise the cool factor as all the quests keep freshness over a long period of time, I would really be looking forward to every module, we get some brand new stuff but everything you do know, just changed to some degree, so running it for the 10th time has something to look forward to.

I think the primary fail of the OP in determining the cost of DDO is in the assumption that players will be playing every day.

My main MMOG is EvE, which I also play for free using PLEX, but I also like to play plenty of other games. I have a gaming rig, PS3, PSP, and NDS. I don't have much time for MMOGs, so I don't want to pay $15 a month for something if I only play one day per weekend.

Turbine has created an excellent FtP model for someone like me, and it is working. Subscriptions are up 40% and they doubled all internal expectations! Meanwhile, they got FtP gamers like myself spreading the word to friends, some of whom will most likely buy content. I hope other MMOGs adopt this model.

Originally posted by Serpens_Sol

I think the primary fail of the OP in determining the cost of DDO is in the assumption that players will be playing every day.

My main MMOG is EvE, which I also play for free using PLEX, but I also like to play plenty of other games. I have a gaming rig, PS3, PSP, and NDS. I don't have much time for MMOGs, so I don't want to pay $15 a month for something if I only play one day per weekend.

Turbine has created an excellent FtP model for someone like me, and it is working. Subscriptions are up 40% and they doubled all internal expectations! Meanwhile, they got FtP gamers like myself spreading the word to friends, some of whom will most likely buy content. I hope other MMOGs adopt this model.

Yes Serpens_Sol,

Your right on my original post I assumed a lot, I'll give you that.  Please understand the date on that post was at the start of the FTP.  Given the information I had at the time.  The information is still 100 % valid, BUT and I stress BUT, many variables had been added to the mix, such as your point as its not your main game, and turbine is giving free stuff such as segles, and  package deals at lower cost, others are making the best out of finding things for free ( kind of like a mini game ).

In fact I must hand it to Turbine as their not as much monsters as I originally thought.  In fact they are somewhat not bad with this FTP, as most games would be, given the history of many MMO's as of late.

I still stand by what I say that this Post is needed to assist others of what the FTP is all about for DDO !! 

Me....Well I have to say that I'm off playing other MMO's because this time around I did not experience the fun I had back when I first played.  It Just seemed that every dungeon was rushed by the experience players ,and the enjoyment and mystery was not their this time around.  I have to add that I did not give it much chance as I only got to level 4 and stopped, and I could be just getting some mmo burnout.  But the game is well built, and would suggest to others to give it a chance.

So have fun, it's a good game :)

LEVELING SIGILS ARE NO BIG DEAL.

And yes, as previously suggested, they do have sales on sigils.  Like right now, you can get them all for only 10 points each which is nothing. 

Please don't let previous posts about frustrations of getting leveling sigils turn you away from this game.  Those people are trying too hard and should just enjoy the game.  Hell, you still get xp even tho you are past the time to level-up anyway.

It is quite easy to enjoy the game for free if you are a casual gamer which completely grabbed me again. I played it before when you had to pay for it, and it didn't feel like a game I should pay for like I was.

You do not have to have all the adventure packs to level all the way to 20.  You do not have to have all the adventure packs to enjoy the game as well.  Some adventures you can purchase are YAWN-FESTS.

I love the fact that I can choose when to pay for it.  I happen to love to playing all kinds of alts, so I felt the need to purchase points for another class to get a premium account for 4 character slots instead of 2.  That was the only time I paid real money.  I also made multiple accounts which is always free with different emails. hehe ><   I've been playing for about 2 months now and I feel like what I paid for was worth it, and I still keep coming back for more. :)

Just a few points that I think were missed in all of this.

1) in your options area check 'LOOT ALL' that way you won't have to worry about missing a loot item at the bottom of the list.

2) there is a very good F2P guide either here or on the DDO O-Boards.  It shows just how you can maximize getting store points so you can buy follow on adventrue packs etc.... The guide does show that it's possible to play the game for free.  Granted it's a long haul type thing but doable.

3) watch the DDO Store specials, I got my level 5 - 8 for 50/75? points on sale.

I don't plan on ever putting cash into the game.  I did play back when it was P2p but it's such a casual game (1 or 2 play sessions a week) that I didn't see it being worth the monthly fee.  Now with it being F2p I can pick it up when ever I want to.  I think I last played a week and a half ago.  Had a great time and who knows when I'll do another session, but since it's not costing me a dime who cares.

Will my play style keep me from grouping for some of the higher adventure packs?  Yea but that doesn't bother me.

I started playing DDO in beta and then quit about 6 months after release due to hitting the level cap of 10 or 50 ranks at the time and a lack of high end content.

When DDO went F2P a few months ago I returned with a friend of mine to see how DDO had evolved. We were both very impressed with the game but had low expectations of the F2P model given past experiences. In my experience many F2P games are very disingenuous offering the equivalent of extended trials with lots of obstacles to compel micro-transactions.

We have not found that to be the case with DDO. While I opted for the monthly sub, my friend has yet to pay a dime. As a duo we have managed to accumulate enough favor (earning free store points) for him to open up most of the adventure packs at our level. At level 6 he has already obtained his sigil to open levels 8-12.

We are personally not hell bent on min-maxing the whole experience or twinking our toons. I enjoy the game-play for what it is and frankly it makes my brain hurt to even consider all of the options for maxing out my toons.  

Unlike other games, DDO is much more focused on  immersive game-play than requiring a certain level of gear in order to progress. Because of this the DDO store facilitates the depth of experience more than the level of game play.

At the end of the day its nice to see so many people playing this game again. As a run of the mill fighter with average gear and average skills I rarely wait more than a few minutes to find a group and enjoy an adventure. 

My girlfriend & I downloaded this game this past week and have been fooling around with it. So here are my thoughts, so far:

- The micro transaction model for this game works. I could not see myself spending $50/60 on the game and then a monthly fee for it.

- The game is EXACTLY like LOTRO. Period. Other than the classes, the game mechanics, graphics, gameplay, etc are exactly the same with both titles. This was a letdown for us because we did not like LOTRO.

- The game has an awesome online wiki that is just full of amazing information that is not in the manual or FAQ guides.

- You can play through and level through the game without ever spending a dime. However, I can really see where spending a little cash can make things in your character's life much easier (like potions, tomes, etc).

- The monthly 500 points makes the monthly fee tempting and is a nice boon but you can get-by without it. The other in-game features like shared bank space, additional character slots, unlimited auction house trading, etc is the features that have more draw than the points IMO.

- Combat was said to be very unique and amazing in this game; I've found it to be the exact opposite: very sluggish and not get fun.

- The game seems very outdated in terms of features (content I'm not sure about since we just started). Examples include the quests' stories/texts, graphics, quest system, the auction house, etc. i.e. lacks a lot of polish I am used to in paid-for MMOs like WOW.

- Skill, feat, spell system seems very bland and unimaginative for the classes we've fooled around with.

 - You can start playing almost immediately while the rest of the game downloads in the background -- This is great for those who want to try the game out but not wait for a 5GB download to finish.

All-in-all, it is a wonderful F2P game but I'm not so sure about the optional monthly fee being worth it -- then again, I don't think LOTRO is either. Just my 2 cents.

Originally posted by Soldarith

My girlfriend & I downloaded this game this past week and have been fooling around with it. So here are my thoughts, so far:

 

- The micro transaction model for this game works. I could not see myself spending $50/60 on the game and then a monthly fee for it.

- The game is EXACTLY like LOTRO. Period. Other than the classes, the game mechanics, graphics, gameplay, etc are exactly the same with both titles. This was a letdown for us because we did not like LOTRO.

- The game has an awesome online wiki that is just full of amazing information that is not in the manual or FAQ guides.

- You can play through and level through the game without ever spending a dime. However, I can really see where spending a little cash can make things in your character's life much easier (like potions, tomes, etc).

- The monthly 500 points makes the monthly fee tempting and is a nice boon but you can get-by without it. The other in-game features like shared bank space, additional character slots, unlimited auction house trading, etc is the features that have more draw than the points IMO.

- Combat was said to be very unique and amazing in this game; I've found it to be the exact opposite: very sluggish and not get fun.

- The game seems very outdated in terms of features (content I'm not sure about since we just started). Examples include the quests' stories/texts, graphics, quest system, the auction house, etc. i.e. lacks a lot of polish I am used to in paid-for MMOs like WOW.

- Skill, feat, spell system seems very bland and unimaginative for the classes we've fooled around with.

 - You can start playing almost immediately while the rest of the game downloads in the background -- This is great for those who want to try the game out but not wait for a 5GB download to finish.

All-in-all, it is a wonderful F2P game but I'm not so sure about the optional monthly fee being worth it -- then again, I don't think LOTRO is either. Just my 2 cents.

This game does not sell for $50 or $60 any more anywhere. It is a free download.

I find LOTRO to be a more mainstream MMO then DDO.

I find the combat to be much better in DDO then any other MMO I have ever played. Your opinion may vary.

DDO is not like WOW, this does not mean it lacks polish. It is simply different from every MMO you have played before.

You are obviously low level if you think the skills, feats, spells  and enhancements are bland. Level up a bit and experiment, then come back and see if you feel the same.

Originally posted by Soldarith

My girlfriend & I downloaded this game this past week and have been fooling around with it. So here are my thoughts, so far:

 

- The game is EXACTLY like LOTRO. Period. Other than the classes, the game mechanics, graphics, gameplay, etc are exactly the same with both titles. This was a letdown for us because we did not like LOTRO.

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uh? No it's not.

DDO is based on Dungeons and Dragons. The classes and skills and leveling is based on Dungeons and Dragons. As are the classes.

LOTRO is not based on Dungeons and Dragons.

Originally posted by Sovrath

Originally posted by Soldarith

My girlfriend & I downloaded this game this past week and have been fooling around with it. So here are my thoughts, so far:

 

- The game is EXACTLY like LOTRO. Period. Other than the classes, the game mechanics, graphics, gameplay, etc are exactly the same with both titles. This was a letdown for us because we did not like LOTRO.

-

 

uh? No it's not.

DDO is based on Dungeons and Dragons. The classes and skills and leveling is based on Dungeons and Dragons. As are the classes.

LOTRO is not based on Dungeons and Dragons.

I am not saying that the stories are not different. In fact, I strongly believe that the only thing separating the two titles are their different stories.  OK, in DDO you get ranks within levels, instead of straight levels.

However, just like The Matrix Online was identical to City of Heroes engine, gameplay, graphics, etc, the same is true (in my mind) for LOTRO and DDO's gameplay, engine, graphics, etc. The skill system, stat system (minus 1-2 names changed), login system, graphics engine, world engine, combat system, animation, feat system, etc are all identical between the two titles.

Don't take my posts as slamming the game -- I think for a F2P title that it offers players a lot of free content and entertainment. However, in playing through the first week or so through the game I can certainly tell why it just couldn't sustain itself with monthly subscription-based business model. I strongly believe that the best thing that has happened to the game was going F2P and introducing the micro transaction model for sustained support of the game's development.

As for my previous comment about the game costing $50-60 plus a monthly fee, I was referring back to the original design of the game and how it was originally intended to sale to the public, not what it is today. I was just simply stating that I could certainly understand why its business model had to change if it wanted to survive.

Just in case someone is reading this that hasn't played DDO or LotRo I feel the need to point out that anyone calling those two games the same would be in the minority.

They have the same publisher and graphics engine. The similarities end about there beyond what most all fantasy based MMORPGs have.

The combat is different, the world is different, the gamplay is different, the stats and itemization are different, the feature set is different and the focus are different... among other things.

Originally posted by page

First a little history, I played D&D for two months, about a year and a half ago.  I love this game, however my old computer was just too old to continue.

Anyway, I get an e-mail to come back and just download the new content, enter my old user name and passward.....  I did all that, and I'm having a blast, D&D Online is better than ever with the new starter zone. So far everything is going good and not feeling threatened to buy anything at level 3( understand that their are only 20 levels so, leveling is slow ).....  I'm going in with the mindset that if everything goes well I'll buy some things along the way as long as the game holds my attention.

HOWEVER, on the bottom near my experience bar, I've been noticing that is has you are level 3 of 4. Not paying it any attention, until today when I came out from a dungeon with a group  and decided to ask " whats with this level 4 stuff , do I have to pay to continue ", Guess what yes, was the answer............ NP I should expect to pay something.

Well here are my findings with the store :

400 points=$6.95,       900 points=$11.99,      1 500 points=$18.99,       3300 points=$38.95   

...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

FOR BASIC GAME PLAY ( stuff you really need, at least how I see it ) :

120 points = level 4-8  ( no price listed  for levels after that, I'm sure that will be a surprise )

995 points = Ruins of Gianthold ( an optional questing zone for levels 13-14 )

412 points = Tangleroot Goarge ( fun, MUST HAVE questing area )

188 points = Necropolis Part 1 ( fun, MUST HAVE questing area )

750 points = Delera's Tomb ( fun, MUST HAVE questing area )

488 points = Three Barrel Cove ( fun, MUST HAVE questing area )

400 points = Sarrowdusk Isle ( fun MUST HAVE questing area )

And MANY more areas that i'm not  sure of .

...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Extras that are nice but not game breaking :

850 points = Extra Character slot to every server

596 points = Monk Class

446 points = Warforge Race

596 points = Drow Race

You could also buy ex boost, potions and more.

....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

So doing the math a see that you would need 3441 points+ what ever after level 8 will cost to play this game for at least 2 months.............. That's over $38.95.

It's a nice game and all, but you will get less than a free trial out of it before you have to pay... unless you don't mind a severe handicap. or just pay the $14.95 or so.

Monk, Warforged, and Drow are not necessary to play. To boot, Drow has traditionally only been available by favor.  Neither are extra character slots a requiremant to play. In fact, it is only something you would even consider if you were rolling 5 or more accounts (since you used to play you should have access to a vet account with 4 slots already )
 

I have yet to purchase a leveling sigil. I have always managed to find one before I had a need for it.

You get store points as you earn favor. You get bonus store points each time you hit a milestone on each server. Not that hard to earn the points needed to unlock Tangleroot. After that, if you are chewing through content to fast then by all means, buy a standard subscription for $15 a month. It's cheaper in the short term for someone spending a lot of time in game. If you are like me and only play occasionally, it is much cheaper to just purchase modules as needed.

Originally posted by Soldarith

 

- Skill, feat, spell system seems very bland and unimaginative for the classes we've fooled around with.

 All-in-all, it is a wonderful F2P game but I'm not so sure about the optional monthly fee being worth it -- then again, I don't think LOTRO is either. Just my 2 cents.

D&D and its skill and spell systems is where MMO's, especially Everquest, got their  start. The reason it seems bland is because it is the baseline most other games have evolved from.

The game itself stays reasonably accurate to the books, which is something very important. If the game deviated to much from its concept it would lose a lot of its playerbase.

As for LOTRO, some people like it some people don't. Personally I did not see much resemblence in the gameplay between the two, but that is just me.