Lux Arcana

Lux Arcana has existed on many worlds, in many times. They are seekers of artefacts, of wealth and of adventure. But, most of all, they seek power.

By nature, Lux Arcana's objectives are often hidden from plain view. They come as traders, as mercenaries, as allies or as conquerors. Their true quest is always at the heart of everything they do - the pursuit of knowledge, and with it, power. What road they travel to get there is always of less importance than the goal itself.

Finding themselves in the Outer Rim, the advance party explored where they would flourish. Finding the dogma and righteousness of the Republic too stifling for their search, they decided to court favour with the Sith and others of the Empire.

With the vanguard formed, Korriban became their new home. What better place to begin the search for power than amongst the dead who had held it, but let it slip their grasp...


Key Facts

Size: 30+ active members (100 max)

Faction: Empire (RP-PvE server)

Focus: PvE, PvP, Crafting

Time Zone: European (English speaking)

Hours per week: Less important as long as you contribute/get involved!

Ages/Outlook: 18+, mature, helpful, friendly and outgoing

Web Site: http://www.luxarcana.org/swtor

SWTOR Guild Site: http://www.swtor.com/guilds/202711/lux-arcana

Voicecomms: Only required for PvP & Operations (Raiding) (we currently use Mumble)


Objectives

Lux Arcana is a multi-game guild that was founded as a community for European MMO players with a "casual" but "dedicated" play style. By "casual" we mean players that have other commitments in real life such as their job, family or other interests, and whose play time may be fairly random. By "dedicated" we mean players that will immerse themselves fully in each game we play and give 100% to the guild. Please visit our website for further details about our history.

Our objectives in SWTOR are to initially try to explore all the storylines in the game as a guild. We support and aid each other and explore everything the rich storyline has to offer.

We also want to enter PvP zones as pre-made guild groups to enjoy working on tactics.

Our aim, depending on demand, is to also establish a Republic wing of the guild to give all members a home when/if they want to explore the Light side as well.


Recruitment

We Accept
Adults (i.e. 18+) with a mature, friendly and outgoing attitude to life.

Casual but dedicated players who like to play hard when they can! Players used to grouping, contributing and getting involved in a guild. We are NOT a guild for solo players, unsocial players or selfish players. You must be a team player.

Highly Desirable

Players that are creative or that have strong organisational skills. We want proactive members. Players that show a passion for the game, for helping fellow members and getting things done! In particular we need fighters, explorers, diplomats and players willing to learn everything there is to know about this game.

Not Acceptable
Immature players. Players that whine, complain and do not accept guild policy. Players with negative attitudes, who are only out for themselves and whinge over not getting "their share" of battle loot. Aggressive or anti-social players. We do not tolerate l33t speak - proper English please! Keep trash talking to an absolute minimum - in character NOT personal!

Guilds Interested in Merging
Lux Arcana has a 7+ year gaming history, and during that time we have handled numerous smaller guilds merging with us. If you are in a small guild or unguilded group of friends that is looking to merge with a bigger guild then please contact me.

For more information please check out our site at:
http://www.luxarcana.org/swtor

Thank you

It's been a crappy launch, there's no question.

After experiencing quite a few launches though I'd say it ranks pretty average so far. Recently, I think only RIFT has gone smoothly.

My biggest worry is this indie tendency to completely ignore stress testing and then act surprised when every system (including billng and forums) falls apart on launch day.

There's no denying though that a real gem could lie beneath all this crap. A kind of land-based EVE with click-to-swing combat.

Marmite is made of yeast, not beef :p

Thanks for putting this together Rohn. Really interesting reading :)

Originally posted by xBludx

The expansion coming up (Darkfall 2010) supposedly in Q4 will show how aware AV is and how much they care about retaining new subs. There needs to be way people who are not that good at pvp (for whatever reason) can survive in the game community and have a role to play. A true "sandbox" must allow that. I really want to see where the devs at AV go with this.

 

I had a great time with this game for 6 months until I finally realized how huge the gap is between old players that macro'd and newish players like me that are on farm for some of these players who will just whack you for your regs as soon as look at you. It's nothing to them. They are farming players in noobland dungeons without any fear of retribution.

 

In some ways, I think DF has the potential to be the best game on the market. In fact, I have had more fun playing DF than whatever game I'm playing now (Aion). I just don't want to be a facking resource to be harvested at will.

 

I would join a guild, but my work schedule makes my play times really irregular. Plus, I'm in Asia, so the server is usually very quiet when I'm on except weekends.  I think joining a guild might change my experience a lot. I'm sure of it, in fact. But I'm not sure how easy it is to join a good guild. Define "good" however you want to.

 

Bottom line is that I'm not down on DF. It's just not be for someone with my schedule and playstyle (solo, small group, flexible schedule, laid back).  It just takes me too much time to replace the stuff I lose (mining, crafting, etc.) to make it worth being a farm product. I would have to go out and gank newer players much weaker than me to get my pvp on and I just don't want to go that way.

I agree totally with your post. Fingers-crossed for the xpac actually delivering a sandbox.

Originally posted by Gdemami

 

---

Originally posted by oTinyo

Pre-magic balancing you could just use bone armour, staff and some regs and, yes, regearing was quick and easy but the game was horribly imbalanced.
Now, the answer to your question is: yes, the gap is big. If you want to even your chances of winning you'll need gear that is made from rare ores and/or you need excellent twitch skills.
All of the quick to make items are rank 40 and below. They aren't worth carrying for PvP. You'll need R50 as an absolute minimum and really R60. Enchants are very desirable too.
Good PvP gear is (IMO): Armour - infernal pieces mixed with other, R70 bow, R60 melee. The better you are at sprint melee  or the more macroed your rays are will allow you to wear lesser stuff

---

Sorry to hear :(

I really question the reasoning capabilities of AV...so many failures on concept level.

Before the game launched, I was reading how gear will not matter, only skills. I had to ask myself: No gear importance + full loot = point?
Same goes for other aspects of the game.

They seem to take 180° turn...

The game is pretty ok, but the main issue imo is the total failure in design making, that is something no content or amount of time they spent on the game fix.

This is the irony: DFO is still probably the best MMO on the market IMO. It's is the most fun, immersive, life-sucking game you've played in years BUT the more time you spend in it, like with most things, the more design flaws you see and the more they start to get to you.

I'd recommend 6-12 months in DFO to anyone for just sheer adrenaline rushes and 'living a game' feeling.

Originally posted by Gdemami

 

---

Originally posted by oTinyo
(b) if you die you simply lose time. That is, I have to go out and hunt the rare ore, mine, hunt the enchant mats etc etc. It's just time, time, time - which I don't have so much of anymore. I don't want it all now, but I don't want to grind out some ready bags for a few days to lose them to someone who's macroed surging spells.

---

Isn't possible to find some balance there and equip gear that is easy to get and still delivering good performance? Is the gap in gear so large?

Pre-magic balancing you could just use bone armour, staff and some regs and, yes, regearing was quick and easy but the game was horribly imbalanced.

Now, the answer to your question is: yes, the gap is big. If you want to even your chances of winning you'll need gear that is made from rare ores and/or you need excellent twitch skills.

All of the quick to make items are rank 40 and below. They aren't worth carrying for PvP. You'll need R50 as an absolute minimum and really R60. Enchants are very desirable too.

Good PvP gear is (IMO): Armour - infernal pieces mixed with other, R70 bow, R60 melee. The better you are at sprint melee  or the more macroed your rays are will allow you to wear lesser stuff

Originally posted by chryses

...If I think about it.  If you put this model on EvE, it would be like dropping a new / trial player into a 0.0 zone and telling them to get on with it. 

FFA type games only work when the developers create a learning curve that allows a gamer to gradually get involved in PvP and facilitate a transfer from a safe hub to the real world.  Even a small one would suffice.  I am personally amazed that AV just went with the, 'I dont give a f..k' attitude and pretty much ignored all common sense picked up from most MMO's. 

Unfortunately I can see more experienced players hanging around new zones because they probably cant find enough to kill out in the wider world. 

This is exactly it.

Do corps in EVE suffer because there are newbie carebear zones? No. In actual fact the large amount of players attracted to Empire space means that many more come through and join corps. It also gives the wolves in null sec some sheep to hunt when they come into low sec or even 0.0.

0.0 flourishes because Empire space exists and flourishes.

I just wish that Aventurine would understand this.

I've played since beta. I don't mind losing fights/sieges/gear. I try to learn and work out a way of winning next time. But two things have sapped my enjoyment and left me unsubbed for a few months: (a) the pop is low and the only people left to fight are the hardcore macroers i.e. lots of wolves, almost no sheep (I have never hunted near newbie zones as I don't want to cut the branch I'm sitting on); and (b) if you die you simply lose time. That is, I have to go out and hunt the rare ore, mine, hunt the enchant mats etc etc. It's just time, time, time - which I don't have so much of anymore. I don't want it all now, but I don't want to grind out some ready bags for a few days to lose them to someone who's macroed surging spells.

Now, I've stuck with DFO and I'll prob come back with the patch today or the expac with prestige classes BUT there are 10's of 1000's who won't. That's 1000's of sheep to keep the wolves fed and 100's of new wolves coming through to keep the game alive and vibrant.

Anyway, this is probably a derail. The community is actually not bad - or at least on a par with most other MMOs, but you won't really talk to them via the epeen general spam channels.

IMO you're the classic player that DFO doesn't keep but should be.

Like PvP, likes freedom to explore but doesn't want to be pushed into a FFA deathmatch they don't stand a chance in within a day of looking at the game.

In race/trade chat you get a version of WoW Barrens chat. The real dross constanly epeening in there. There are lots of decent, good players but they tend to stick to clan/alliance chat and never bother with the retards in general chat unless they need to buy and sell.

Aventurine are their own masters. It is great for a team of developers to be financially self-sufficient, but you've seen the downside. They will stick to their hardcore vision stubbornly even if it pushes away some of the very players they should be getting hold of.

PvP is a niche. FFA PvP is a niche of that. Hardcore, Deathmatch, no safe zone PvP is a niche of that. That's one hell of a small niche. A vocal minority, myself included, would like to see something built into the game to separate older players from newer ones to a certain degree. Whether this is EVE's Empire, low sec & null sec idea or simply an alignment system that achieves anything at all - something needs to change to allow new players the chance to 'root-in'.

Originally posted by Jaffie

I was just notified by Mortal Onlne that my credit card was billed for one month of play.

I preordered the game a long time ago and was never really able to get in and play.

I figured I would give it a try since I was already "subbed". I spent all day downloading the game and patches.

I know it's supposed to be hardcore but there's a fine line between hard core and just a bad new player experience. I'm thinking MO was the latter. I unsubbed because I don't want to forget to but I may give it another try before my month runs out.

I was away on holiday when MO released and I found out when I returned that I had 9 days left of my sub. I emailed Support asking for an actual proper month to play (i.e. what I had originally paid for) to see if a continuing sub would be worth it and got a flat 'no' from them.

Releasing relatively suddenly like that and basically saying "screw you" to people who bought the game a year before release to support their efforts is not good business IMO.

Over the past 5 years I have played just too many games with loads of potential and small/inept Dev teams who never seems to realise it or who realise it in such tiny, slow steps that it just gets depressing.

MO is on my list to try if/when a free trial comes out, but I feel burnt by this company. Expensive game, released too soon and making subs run from day 1 of this early release with no regard as to whether that date would even be possible to make for their customers.

/QQ

Hmm...I wouldn't go as far as calling it a sham, but I do take your point.

It's kind of depressing for me. I'm an old gamer who loves the ideas these indie companies have been trying to realise over the past few years (DF, MO, Xyson) but I'm always left with a certain degree of disappointment. What gets me the most is that the main reason these games let me down is often in execution rather than manpower. The development cycle just seems badly thought through.

DF tried to make a true skill based game and yet didn't limit those skills in any way, so everyone does everything, there's no specialisation and the game becomes macroing & mindless PvPeee. MO tried to implement everything at once, far too broad an aim, and have ended up with even the basics, like server/client performance, being screwed.

Xyson however is still in its infancy and has openly had to deal with some early server issues and some dick DoSing the server. I just hope it doesn't go the same way as DF and MO and can actually create and stick to an intelligent development cycle that doesn't doom it before it's begun.

I do wish a company of experienced professionals - like Blizzard (excuse my language :p) - would create a proper open-ended sandbox. Either that or CCP would do one not in spaceships, as I just can't seem to identify with EVE however hard I try.

Yea, because an exhaustion system i.e. advancement cap/time spent, is so hard to code =/

The fact that previous skill based advancement systems weren't thought through properly and allow(ed) horrible macroing is not any reason to prefer stale class based levelling systems.

Nevertheless, good classes (Vanguard, DDO etc) can compensate for what is essentially a weaker, class based system - in my opinion :)

@Xianthos - yes, it probably would be suicide for them, but perhaps NOT doing something will be suicide too.

@Phry - A wipe would hit the legit players too. Some kind of normalisation would be great though...if possible to work out at this late stage.

@Aramanu - yes, that seems to be the way AV are heading. What kills me about this is that it involves dealing with only one of the problems once or twice a year. It's too slow and I have fears for there being anyone left by the time they have it 'fixed'.

@Trix - Welcome to poorly thought through game systems.

@DarthRaiden - I agree that AV have done a great job of removing hacks & cheats but they seem to never undo the mess the hacks & cheats create. The biggest 'cheat' of all being macroing which is the basis of so much that is wrong with the game today.

@xanphia - "Macroing is a different story, but, frankly no one considers it cheating at this point in the game" And this is what I'm talking about. Using 3rd party autoclickers while (basically) afk is the only way anyone could hope to catch up in the game now and yet it's basically cheating. My definition of cheating, as I explained, is broad. It involves doing something that is not in the game client/mechanics to gain an advantage. It is SO sad that macroing is considered a main method of progression in a modern MMORPG. It is souless and no fun.

Wall of text INC...

Background: I'm a DFO subscriber and player. I was in late beta and, except a break for about 6 weeks last summer, I've played 2-6 hours almost every day.

Cheating: in the widest sense of the word i.e. not just playing the game. Including obvious things like bugging mobs, glitching into terrain and mount kicking mobs, using various dupe exploits etc. ALSO including all types of AFK skilling up (macros, swimming, sprinting, bloodwalls etc) as there is no in built mechanism in the game for these and they for the most part use 3rd party software.

Aventuring has never, to date, reversed the action of these cheats on a broad scale. It only slams the door on anyone trying to follow behind to keep up.

This has created a situation where:

- Cheaters generally win 1 v 1 fights as they have higher skilled characters.

You can outplay a cheater - hitting them way more than they hit you - but when you check health, they'll be on 50%+ and you'll be nearly dead. Player skill is SO much less important than stats, character skills & gear it's painful. This can be very demotivating and is generally met with "QQ moar l2playnoob" when really it should be "Sploit moar - I'm actually not that good".

- Clans with lots of cheaters get rich from both exploiting and all the battles they win

- Cheaters then gain a city with the best resources e.g. a mine, which in turn gives them access to the best items in the game.

- Cheaters then head out with superman characters and the best equipment which means they just keep winning and getting more rich and powerful.

- Legit players cannot get on an even playing field as the 'cap' in DFO is incredibly high. However much they grind the game the cheaters can keep moving forward too.

- Access to rarer items is fundamentally more difficult as they cannot take and hold a regular source like a city mine. Legit players are usually therefore less well equipped, which means the playing field remains uneven in this area too.

- The political landscape is shaped almost exclusively by cheating.

The most powerful are the best/biggest cheaters. The only way to make a real mark is to either be a cheating clan or ally them and hide behind them, hopefully leeching some rare ore as you go.

- BIGGEST CONSEQUENCE: People quit the game because they are fighting people they CANNOT get on even terms with. Even getting close to them is a grind which would make a Korean developer blush.

One saving grace is that DFO is, in essence, a group PvP game not an arena. BUT needing greater numbers to win all the time brings with it far greater coordination issues and player retention issues.

What AV has done/is going to do:

- They've increased skill gains whilst fighting PvE

But this helps the cheaters too. They can maintain their unassailable lead by even quicker grinding.

- They've plugged most dupes, shorcuts & exploits. They also instruct their GMs to monitor AFK skilling up and getting caught results in a ban, bank wipe or account deletion.

As I said, slamming the door behind the people who have used this progression method meaning, yes, they can maintain their unassailable lead.

- They're redoing the health point calculation so there is less of a health gap between newer and veteran players.

Good move. But when someone is so maxxed out and in top tier gear this is only a step in the right direction, not a proper solution.

- They're looking into spreading rare ore access across a wider player range.

Good move but no news as to how or when this is going to happen as yet. It also gives the cheaters 18 months+ head start on gearing up and levelling crafting skills to use these resources.

What should be done:

You know, I'm not sure that this isn't just one huge hole that it isn't possible to dig the game out of. IMO any real solution would involve losing players to make sure the game flourishes in future. I just don't think any band aids can work now. AV have to make the call to see if they can financially survive a cull on the cheaters and make the game fundamentally different.

The bottom line is: The gap between the vet and the noob, the gap between the haves and the have-nots needs to be controlled and not insurmountable.

- Something has to be done about previous cheaters.

Slamming the door behind them has been done several times now. This has NOT helped, it just sweeps the problem under the rug until newer players come across it and then, generally, quit. Normalisation of their stats & skills? Normalisation of their bank balance? I just have no idea how you'd work this out so late in the day. This needed to be done after each cheat was plugged, but wasn't. This WILL lose the game players, but will it help the game's image and retention of newer players? Thankfully it's not my call to make.

- Character progression needs to be redesigned

The gap between a vet and a newb has to be calculated PROPERLY this time so as not to be game-killing. Macroing should not be prevented by GMs, it should be both unecessary and impossible due to game design (EVE anyone?Skill cap? Exhaustion system? New idea?)

- Access to or the effects of rare ore needs to be reassessed.

Rare gear should either be:

i. Much less availble - meaning even the super rich & powerful would use it with caution; or

ii. Much more available - meaning that the rich would wear it regularly and the average would have to weigh the risk of using/losing it; or

iii. Less effective - let rare gear give and edge in combat but not be a deciding factor.

- Total rework of the race and alignment system

DFO was meant to be a race war. It is not a race war. Not a blue v red war. It's not even a clan v clan war. It's huge alliances fighting over trifles.

New players are fair game to anyone and everyone. I carried on playing through this, some others too - but possibly tens of thousands haven't. Niche game, sure, but come on! How few players do you actually want to appeal to?

Either scrap the races and/or the alignment system or make them mean something.

DFO is such an excellent idea. Such an excellent game. However, the results of cheating need to be addressed as urgently as the source of the cheating. If a system can be cheated you need to rework the system and undo the negative results of the previous system.

More appealing to me than new armour, prestige classes, sea towers or really anything, would be that the fundamental problems which have been apparent in the game since early on are dealt with and the results of those problems are cleaned up. THIS is what Dev time and focus should be on.

Originally posted by VultureSkull

Originally posted by Malteaser

 

Vanguard is such an amazing game, beats all other mmo's on the market, the only downfall is the forever decreasing population.

 

 

 Not a truer word spoken(or written)!

I will go to sign the pettion and hope it helps, although i think SoE has got this one sewn up like a kipper as it seems they want it to die so that it does not compete with their beloved EQ2.

Yes. VG holds many fond memories for me and my guild still has a branch there but it has become very clear that SOE pretty much only bought VG to stop it from killing EQ2.

They succeeded. But, from what I hear, EQ2 is dying too.

I play DFO. I hate the gaps between updates though and the very poor Dev communication.

Check this out (again) though: http://www.mmorpg.com/blogs/Paragus1/012010/5564_Darkfall-Community-QA-with-Aventurine

The next patch will be good...maybe even awesome.

And, no you won't believe me but, I'm not a total fanboy. I'm suffering burn out like so many DFO players atm. The reason I say it is - the patches are between good and excellent so far. But they are too slow in coming. A couple of huge dumps a year rather than regular additions. By the time a new one comes along people have already been burnt out for a couple of months.

More than anything else I wish AV would review their update policy and make them smaller and more regular.

I'm not going to slag off any competition but, as a gamer who like sandboxes, when I look around the only viable competitor is EVE. AV are good programmers and god-awful businessmen. Their client is solid and their engine is capable of staging mass warfare in a fantasy setting like no other. But they either totally blank (potential) customers or cover them with over-sugared hype.

Now, I'd prefer silent Devs with a solid product to open Devs whose product is a patchy, half-working mess. But these long periods of silence and apparent inaction turn off a lot of players.

Anyone who DFO appeals to for an extended period will tell you that AV have a very solid foundation. But they really need to up the speed of released. Not the amount of content, just smaller patches more regularly delivered.

They can then turn this solid clan based warfare game into a proper sandbox.

The trial is 1 euro. Give it a shot.

You'll either love it or hate it.

Whether you love or hate it, there is nothing on the market that competes with it. It is a unique experience and one I still greatly enjoy.

A lot of the reviews are written by people who wouldn't normally play a game like this. Why ask a WoW player to review a game with no targeting and full loot? Maybe their editors could answer that.

Originally posted by Dubhlaith

The point is that the people that play this game are bad people. The game is good. The mechanics are good, and have the potential for greatness. The people are bad. The people make the game not fun because Darkfall, as in any RPG worth its salt, has progression such that a person months along can easily slaughter a new character. That is fine, until the veterans deliberately go to the early areas of the game, find new players, and rape them senseless. That is not "PVP happened." That is "The people that did this are mean and enjoy torturing other people in the only forum for which they have to do such things."

You people who are defending such actions are what is wrong with the game, and are why people do not enjoy serious PVP FFA games. The concept is beautiful. You jerks are ruinous.

What Warghoul said, plus...

The guys who prey on noobs aren't vets generally. They're guys who were newbs themselves a little while ago. They were sheep and have now become wolves for newer players. This cycle moves up throughout the game and non-macroed/exploited vets are sheep to the no-life, macroing exploiters.

This game is about group combat, not 1 v 1 arenas. A lower skilled group (i.e. time-played) can win against a 'vet' group with good organisation and tactics.

If you can't get used to losing then move on. But for those of us who don't mind losing, it makes the wins all that more sweet.

I don't know why people are comparing MO wtih Darkfall.

Darkfall's only hiccup was the sale and release. Badly done because of no stress test. The rest (client, server stability, content etc) was good - esp for an indie company. Aventurine are an experienced programming team who have clients like the Greek miltary though, so I suppose it's no surprise.

MO is in a horrible state atm. I don't have hope as such, I would need to know the position of their finances to have that. If they can fund another 6-12 months before needing to release they could be OK. If they ship in the next quarter, they're doomed. DOOMED I TELL YOU! hehe

Vanguard is, for me, is the lesson all developers should learn from. Excellent game, horrible release and it never recovered its reputation. It could've been a million+ subscriber game and ended up rotting in Sony's Station Pass stable alongside the Matrix Online.

Your GPU will prob heardly be breaking a sweat. It's the CPU that DFO hammers (always running one core at max to get the most FPS). What's your CPU temps like? Maybe check the temp in BIOS immediately after a crash.