podgie_bear

Looks a very good build. Reminds me of my grouchy little dwarf, loved him and his sarcastic comments. Dwarf is a fantastic character for dealing damade in Underworld, I built one that fought bare handed (had to keep removing weapons equipped by the auto-pickup loot) and fought my way into Gold difficulty on the harcore server with him. Even beat dragons to death barehanded (took a looooong time for each dragon), by spamming the "Attack" CA since the dwarf was able to hit 8 times per attack and monsters couldn't hit back while being rocked by the punches. Great fun, but took patience. Finally lost him to that worst of all enemies, the lag monster, lag was the greatest killer on the servers. Hmm, knuckles are starting to itch, may have to build "Wee Jock" the dwarfish hardman again!

I found that although Sacred 2 is 'technically' the better game and definitely has better graphics, it just doesn't seem to be as good a game overall. The storyline, characterisations, etc seem to me to feel as though the developers were more concerned with making a sequel based on the hugely successful first game than in lavishing the care and attention on it that it deserved. It certainly has its good points, but it seems not to have that indefinable something which characterised the first one and instead seems to be leaning towards some sort of industry standard game. Sort of in the way Firefox seems to be losing its identity and becoming some sort of Chrome clone. I may not have said that very well, but I find it difficult to put into words.

I have to admit that I have reverted to playing Sacred Underworld in preference to Sacred 2 and wonder just how many others have done the same. I have nothing particular against Sacred 2, it just hasn't grabbed me in the same way that Underworld did and after staring at the screen for 10 minutes trying to work up the enthuesiasm to take my Shadow Warrior out for yet another slaughter of the bad, worse and indifferent, I finally realised that I just couldn't be bothered and that I would rather be playing Underworld anyday, so I uninstalled 2, reinstalled Underworld and am far happier watching my crusty, bad-tempered little dwarf punching and breakdancing his way across Ancaria, while requesting toasted goblin for breakfast! Am I the only one?

What would I change for thr Inquisitor? I would enable him to work for the Light as well as the Dark side! Don't think that this would be a huge difference? Well think about it. Think Star Wars for a minute and imagine Darth Vader deciding to work for the Rebellion, he doesn't have to become an angelic person, he can still be a nasty piece of work. Think also of DC comic style heroes, how many of them are nice guys and how many are "dark heroes"? Me, I fancy being a dark hero in the batman style and using tactics designed to scare the **** out of the bad guys and the Inquisitor fits the bill perfectly, so let me use him on the side of Light. Oh, go on, pretty please with sugar on top?

There were several articles about this subject in the national newspapers recently and some of the problems caused by using predictive text without proofreading before sending the messages. It seems that far from speeding things up, it caused people to take longer by having to check and correct the predictive stuff. One example I remember being mentioned was a man sending a text to his friend claiming that he would be "coming out of the clinic soon", but the predictive text was sent as "coming out of the closet soon". It had unforseen consequences for his teaching career and caused a major problem for his marriage before it all got sorted. Another mentioned was between a person and her boss and an innocent text had its meaning altered by predictive text, insulted her boss and almost lost her her job. I hate it personally, because I tend to try and text fast, but unless I reread and correct everything I send, I would be another example of it messing everything up. It's like Microsoft programs being "helpful", it takes 3 times as long having to undo the helpful efforts.

No it's not paranoia, it's just learning how to live in a society where fraud, theft and deceit are an everyday fact of life. It's so commonplace that it is now accepted as normal. I always pay cash and don't use any plastic, credit or debit unless there is no other choice and just the other day I received more change than I was entitled to, so I handed the excess back to the shop assistant. It is just the way I was brought up, but from the reactions I got from her and other customers who saw what happened, you would have thought that I suddenly declared that I was a mass murderer or a paedophile. Since when has being honest turned you into a dangerous lunatic? I know that my values and morals are "old fashioned" and no longer considered normal by most people (I even open doors for ladies, give up my seat for them and even help lift buggies on'off buses or up/down steps), but being considered a wierdo for not having a credit card or a Facebook account is starting to get on my nerves. I know that I caused an almighty row at one airport who tried to refuse to let me "check in", because they would not accept a passport as a form of ID and insisted that I had to produce a credit card, then refused to believe that an honest person might not own one!

An interesting question, but one that will probably never be resolved since it is subjective and dependent on what you are looking for. What is the most interesting to play today, solo, multiplayer, looking for a challenge, relaxing, micromanaged, uncomplicated? I would say that the Shadow Warrior is the most powerful character though, anything with 100% invisibilty (Shadow Veil, buffed), while using Skeleton Fortresses, Spectral Hand, Throwing Stars and Nether Alliegance takes some beating!

I had a try of Drakensang this morning and as a browser game I would say that it is excellent, although it may be a bit on the basic side at the moment. I look forward to seeing how it develops, since I think that there is a lot of potential there.

I agree with Stubbie and I also think that after the original version vanished down a big black hole, this new version just doesn't have the same flavour. I don't just mean the more 'kiddie' friendly graphics either, there is just something vaguely unsatisfying about this new version after playing the original. So I moved on and now spend most of my time playing Lord of the Rings online, which is (to my mind) probably one of the best games I have played and free2play at that. I know that it says you can buy all the updates from the game store, but I have done so with tokens earned in the game itself, it hasn't cost me a penny.

I loved them too, I still have M&M7,8&9 though I agree about 9. I also play Heroes of M&M and feel that series peaked with 3 especially if you have the WOG mod (War of the Gods) and still play that regularly, but 4 was too childish and 5 is just another Warcraft clone. Shame, as both series were leaders in their day.

I drink tea whenever I feel like drinking tea as well, but I sip my tea during the meal. I drink Rooibos tea as well, rather than 'ordinary' tea. I love the stuff and not just for the fact that it is decaf, but because it has a better flavour to my taste buds and yes it is readily available here in England, all the supermarkets sell it alongside the ordinary tea.

I think that the 3pennorth is nearer to £3worth now unfortunately. I love my egg & chips, sadly I am not allowed it anymore due cholesterol/diet/weight issues, etc. God I hate what these stupid dieticians have done to us! My parents and grandparents enjoyed fried foods, alchohol and smoking without any worries about health issues and all lived long happy lives. My wife's obsession with healthy lifestyles these "experts" advise has deprived me of all that and am I happier or healthier because of it? No, I am not! All of my enjoyment is in looking back at what used to be and the future is just a grey lifestyle of taking the healthy options.

I think it depends on whether they are real "chips", or american style "french fries". French fries nearly always seem to be on the side, but real chips tend to BE the main meal, with fish, fried egg & sausage or whatever added to them. I notice that it seems to be very popular these days to just have a large plate of chips with grated cheese, curry sauce, onion gravy or whatever poured over the top. Although I was suspicious at first, I was tempted into trying some of these and I have become a convert.

Apart from the deaths of the innocent victims and the pain and grief caused to their families, there is the knock on effects of his actions. edited by gogoblender

Bronze is necessary for those who would find Silver difficult for any reason, children starting out, inexperienced players trying to find their way around what can be a complicated and involved game, or whatever. Lots of games provide the same option, but it is usually the case that Bronze difficulty would be called "Easy" and Silver would be called "Normal". So what is the problem? If it is too easy for you, skip straight to Silver and leave Bronze for those players that it was intended for!

Argh! I am suffering the agonies of withdrawal symptoms. My hard drive crashed and has been diagnosed with several damaged clusters in the boot sector and I have been without my computer for 6 days. 6 days without LOTRO, this is torture! My level 18 Dwarf Champion is sitting forlornly on the Barrow Downs playing with his 2-Handed Battleaxe, waiting for his new set of armour which has still not been made by my level 19 Hobbit Guardian Armourer, who is waiting for a new supply of leather from my level 15 Hobbit Warden. He is busilly hunting the North bree fields for hides, while my level 16 Minstrel is crafting protective runes and jewellry for them all. Meanwhile, my new Captain is still stuck in the intro, surrounded by Blackwold Bandits. But they are all waiting on me and I am waiting for a new hard drive! (screams in frustration) I need my LOTRO fix!

OH I agree Gogo, I just mean that so much of the magic is lost if you have read all about tricks and tips before you even start playing, or if you follow an uber build before you have tried for yourself. But who am I to say, that is why I made it a poll, to see what others think. I know that I wish I had not used the wiki so soon, I learned a lot there that would have been far more enjoyable to have leaned by playing the game. In fact, it ruined things for me a bit and the game just hasn't been the same since I started researching before playing. It is still fun, but the magic has been lost.

I don't want to give the impression that I think we should have big red warning notices on every page of the wiki, I just wondered if one notice on the home page along the lines of, "Why not discover the magic of Sacred 2 for yourself before enhancing your enjoyment by researching the undiscovered treasures contained in these pages?" A bit OTT perhaps, but gives some idea what I mean.

I am finding it a bit disheartening the number of new players who post that they have just bought the game and are looking for advice on how to build their characters, referring to things on the Wiki. I am begining to think that the Wiki is actually a 2 edged sword and wonder if it should carry a big warning sign; SPOILER ALERT! Don't get me wrong, I think that the Wiki is a wonderful resource that is very useful when you are having problems and need help, or if you want to refine your build, etc. But for a new player, it can be a massive spoiler that ruins the magic of the game. I have received PMs from new players saying " I am new to the game, saw your Build/Guide on the Wiki and decided to use it as my first character, could you tell me how to.......". OK, it is flattering that they want to try a build that I posted on there, but I think they should be off exploring for themselves, not trying to retrace my, or anyone elses footsteps! I know that I regret using it too soon and losing a lot of the magic of the game because when I encountered new stuff while playing, it was not a case of "Oh wow, that is neat!", it was "yeah , I know because I read it on the Wiki"! I don't know whether we perhaps aught to put some sort of spoiler notice on the Wiki to warn players that they might well miss a lot of the magic of playing the game for themselves first. What do you think?

The best advice I would give you is to totally ignore what it says on here about how to build your character, how you can so easily gimp it and what skills are best to use. This is all stuff that a new player doesn't need to worry about, what you want to do is to just play the game and enjoy yourself. All this stuff is really for later on when you know more of what you are doing and want to refine your characters in some way. Start off by just playing whatever takes your fancy and enjoy the wondrous things you will find as you explore the game. Yes you will make mistakes and do things wrong, but that can be an enjoyable part of the gaming experience! To be totally honest, doing too much research and worrying about making the best possible character can totally ruin the enjoyment of the game for you. Just go play it and when you have played a few characters and know how things work, THEN start thinking about the stuff on the Wiki! Enjoy the exploring the game and finding things, don't lose the WOW factor by reading up on everything first! PS. WOW, as in "Oh WOW, I didn't know it could do that!", not World of Warcraft!

Yeah, never mind the maths............... WHACK ATTACK!!

Squelched is a good word, but I much prefer Splatt! Sort of like the sound made by a soft, fragile, feminine Seraphim, being squashed into a puddle of tattered flesh and pool of blood by a very large and heavy Warhammer, being wielded by a strong, muscular Inquisitor on steroids! Mwuahahahahah! signed, Cute, cuddly little Podgie Bear

Or as some of us less gifted mathematically players believe: Magnify = Big Whacker! Ordeal = Big Whacker with spike thingies! WHACK, WHACK, WHACK! Uggh. Bossman squelched!

That Bondbug! *shakes fist!* Podgie, it's really all free? How about all content... is there some content you have to pay for? How does that work gogo p.s. Sorry for the double post! Yes it is all Free2Play. You buy things from the Lotro Game Store with Turbine Tokens which you can purchase as a number of players do, BUT I have purchased all the same items and it hasn't coast me anything, because you can earn those same Turbine tokens ingame by doing certain quests. The only advantage that I can see to buying tokens is that you get them quicker. I suppose it is like in Sacred 2, it takes time to build a character up to level 40 and gain skills, or you could 'cheat' and download a level 40 'blank character' for XX tokens. It is all a con with the tokens really, for example after completing the first 3 regions of the game world, you need to buy the next region for 795 tokens, but I earned 725 tokens doing quests in those 3 regions with just 1 character and you start with 3 charcters, so why would I need to buy tokens? And since you you can start 3 different characters with the free account and all tokens apply to the account not the character, that is 2175 tokens available in the free content. When I started, I used a throw-away charcter to learn my way around, and it earned tokens, then I deleted it, kept the tokens and started a permanent character and he earned tokens doing the same quests which were added to my account total. If I kept changing character I could do those same quests for ever and earn the same tokens forever, boosting my total available to spend. What is especially stupid about the whole thing is that with your free account you can have 3 characters questing and earning you tokens, ON EACH SERVER! And there are 30 different servers available to you, 15 American and 15 European, so you can earn 65,250 tokens and if you then delete all your characters and start again, you can earn the tokens again as well as keeping the ones you originally had! All the buyable content put together needs only a fraction of those tokens. So why buy them? You can buy extra character slots with 595 tokens, extra chest storage space, and a few special skills have to be purchased with the tokens, but I have already bought all of those and it hasn't cost me a penny, and I still have 1000+ tokens to buy 'unnecessary' items, like decorative costumes, special riding animals, unique dyes to change the look of my costumes, etc. So as far as I can see buying tokens is really for those who haven't got the patience to earn them ingame. There are also some well known cheats that take advantage of free tokens given to new characters that can earn you enough tokens to buy all sorts of goodies (like quadrupling your bag space) which makes things easier for new characters to get started and once you have bought them, they apply to all your charcters on all servers for ever more! Plus the game world is huge and you can earn more tokens in every new region you 'purchase', so all in all, I can't ever see a need to buy tokens rather than earn them ingame. And it is a fantastic game, sort of like a cross between Oblivion and Sacred 2 (with Schot's camera angles *plug*) and with the players forming their own Guilds (called kinships) and the group raiding and partying.....aaah! I joined the Inn League and as part of the initiation I had to run to every Inn in the area and drink 6 pints at each all within a time limit. The game recognises the effects of alcohol and by the time I got to the last Inn, my character was staggering all over the road, singing rude songs and with blurred vision. The table in the last Inn seemed to hold 30+ pints instead of six and actually picking up the real ones instead of the illusions was a real challenge. Plus for the next 24 hours (real time), my character suffered all the effects of a hangover! Sigh, happy days!

Ah, real life. The curse of the gaming class!