All classes at the start of Elden Ring ranked – From unpopular to popular

On February 25, fans can dive into the world of Elden Ring. You told us which classes you will start with in the new FromSoftware game. Here they are ranked.

This is what we asked: The new action RPG Elden Ring offers its players 10 different classes to start their journey through the Lands Between. They differ in their equipment and stats.

A Bandit or a Warrior, for example, has a higher Strength score than an Astrologer, who relies more on magic and needs the Wisdom stat.

The selection is vast. Therefore, we asked you in a survey which class you will play first at the launch of Elden Ring. Here are your answers.

This is how you voted: A total of 2,460 MeinMMO readers participated in the survey. Each had one vote that they could cast, and the vote could not be undone.

Here are the results:

  • Rank 10: Warrior – 3.37 %
  • Rank 9: Prophet – 3.82 %
  • Rank 8: Bandit – 4.02 %
  • Rank 7: Prisoner – 5.4 %
  • Rank 6: Hero – 5.52 %

Special case: “I don’t know yet” – 10.03 %

At the bottom of our survey were the two Dexterity classes, Warrior and Bandit, as well as the Prophet, a mage class that relies on the Wisdom stat for casting miracles and fire spells.

They are followed by the Prisoner in his awkward mask, who relies on both Dexterity and Intelligence. The Hero, on the other hand, is a completely Strength-based class that goes into battle with a war axe.

Here are the top 5 of your choice:

Rank 5: Confessor

elden ring confessor class
“A spy of the clergy. Skilled in sword techniques and invocations.”
  • Votes: 212 (8.61 %)

This is the Confessor: This class starts the game armed with a sword, shield, and a finger seal that allows casting magical invocations. Its basic equipment and its stats quickly reveal that the Confessor does not specialize in just one area.

It can handle magic well, thanks to its 14 points in Faith and 13 points in Wisdom. At the same time, it also has 12 points in both Strength and Dexterity, making it a solid melee fighter.

This duality is also reflected in its starting skills. On one hand, the Confessor can heal, while on the other hand, it can sneak up on its opponents particularly quietly. So it is a versatile class for players who want to enjoy the advantages of both mages and melee fighters right from the start.

Rank 4: Astrologer

elden ring astrologer class
“A scholar who reads his fate from the stars; glintstone sorcery is in his blood.”
  • Votes: 251 (10.19 %)

This is the Astrologer: With a solid 16 points in Intelligence and 15 in Wisdom, the Astrologer is clearly in the mage classes. Accordingly, he is supplied right at the start with two glintstone sorceries that can destroy enemies:

  • Glintstone Pebble allows you to shoot a magical projectile at individual enemies.
  • Glintstone Arc, on the other hand, is an area attack that lets you unleash a horizontal wave.

Apart from that, the Astrologer can also hold his own a bit in melee combat. His equipment includes a short sword and a small shield, and he also starts with 12 points in Dexterity.

But the strength of the class lies clearly in magic, and it should be played accordingly.

Rank 3: Vagabond

elden ring vagabond class
“A knight banished from his homeland, on eternal wanderings.”
  • Votes: 264 (10.72 %)

This is the Vagabond: The wandering knight is a physical melee fighter, as expected. Armed with a longsword, a halberd, and a shield, he is well-equipped to confront his enemies directly.

His starting stats also clearly show that he is suited for those who love melee combat. With 15 points in Vigor, 14 in Strength, and 13 in Dexterity, he is well-prepared to take down enemies at the front line.

On the other hand, his magical stats are very low. So anyone wanting to play a mage or a hybrid magic class should look elsewhere.

Rank 2: Beggar

elden ring beggar class
“A poor devil, naked as the day of his birth. A club is all he possesses.”
  • Votes: 442 (17.95 %)

This is the Beggar: At first glance, this class may seem unusual and even strange. With 10 points in every single stat, it cannot excel in anything particularly well or particularly badly. Additionally, the Beggar starts completely naked and is armed only with a heavy club.

But veterans of the SoulsBorne games know exactly what lies behind this strange class. The Beggar is a blank slate. It is a class that you can give character to by deciding how to skill it.

Therefore, Beggars are primarily one thing: potential. Unlike other classes, they also start at Level 1, making the initial level-ups very cheap, as you only need to spend a few runes.

Rank 1: Samurai

elden ring samurai class
“A skillful fighter from the reeds. Prefers katanas and longbows.”
  • Votes: 502 (20.38 %)

This is the Samurai: At the top of our survey is the Samurai, with a good lead. With solid 15 points in Dexterity, 13 in Endurance, and 12 in both Strength and Vigor, he is a good candidate for all kinds of melee builds.

Armed, this class is traditionally equipped with an Uchigatana, a shorter samurai sword. Additionally, it comes with a longbow and two types of arrows: regular bone arrows and fire arrows, which you can use to ignite your enemies right from the start.

Which of these classes will you play at launch? Let us know in the comments.

Elden Ring reveals release time – It starts at midnight

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

YouTuber says: A whole Twitch category is being dragged through the mud by female streamers

The YouTuber and Twitch streamer Oliver “AlphaKevin” Guthe criticized in one of his videos provocative female streamers who hang around in categories of Twitch. Particularly, he focuses on the ASMR category.

What does ASMR actually mean? ASMR stands for “Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response”, which means a relaxing or soothing feeling. Some people enjoy it, for example, when people smooch into the microphone or eat something crunchy. It gives people a warm, satisfying feeling or even helps them fall asleep.

How does ASMR work on Twitch? The streamer sits very close to their sensitive microphone and makes various noises. Whether with objects or their own body – as long as soothing and pleasant sounds are produced.

There are also specific microphones and attachments that allow streamers to literally lick them. This creates a feeling for the listener that the streamer is really very close to their ear, provided the listener wears headphones.

However, there is a catch that AlphaKevin sharply criticizes. He even says that the entire category is being dragged through the mud.

More on the topic
Twitch streamer licks microphones, makes 1.3 million € a month – What do the parents think?
von Schuhmann

Provocative female streamers with sexual innuendos in ASMR category

What does AlphaKevin criticize? In his YouTube video “I’ve had enough of these female streamers!” Guthe criticizes that female streamers behave too provocatively in the ASMR category while also making “sexually satisfying sounds”. He considers this unacceptable, as Twitch’s guidelines should prohibit exactly such behavior – in principle.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

But when such women stand in revealing lingerie in front of the camera and do any sexualized things, then that’s completely fine again, because, I mean, they also bring in a lot of money for the platform.

Oliver “AlphaKevin” Guthe

He does not understand how such female streamers can be successful, despite them having, in his view, “zero talent in terms of entertainment.”

The female streamers sometimes do not even try, according to AlphaKevin. He went to a female streamer’s live stream to get a sense of it and saw that her donation goal still bore the title “October”, despite it already being February: “She didn’t even bother to change the month of the donation goal.”

Furthermore, AlphaKevin points out that such female streamers inspire many young girls to do exactly the same to potentially earn quick and easy money.

“The biggest problem are the viewers”

Such Twitch female streamers can only succeed because there are viewers who donate money to them, according to AlphaKevin. They offer various “rewards” in their viewers when they donate a certain amount.

For example, female streamers write the names of viewers on certain body parts or somewhere in the room, which is visible to all spectators.

Additionally, they set up specific donation goals to unlock special ASMR content or other “goodies”. Some provide their viewers with a follow on Instagram or their Snapchat, for example.

All viewers who support this push such content further and offer the female streamers a place on Twitch.

But I wonder how someone can sink so low as a viewer to donate to her [the streamer] there so that you get the honor of appearing on her arm.

Oliver “AlphaKevin” Guthe

He calls the content that the female streamers offer as “top quality content”. AlphaKevin does not understand how such content can be successful on Twitch.

However, the YouTuber has nothing against ASMR itself. If the content were creative and well-executed, he wouldn’t have produced the video at all.

Current state of the ASMR category on Twitch

twitch-asmr-category-example-1
This is what the ASMR category currently looks like on Twitch.

ASMR is no longer unknown: The category has been among the top 30 most-watched categories on Twitch in the last 90 days, with an average of 15,976 viewers.

Thus, the ASMR category ranks above large and well-known games like Final Fantasy 14, Destiny 2, and New World.

In total, over 34 million hours were spent in the ASMR category in the last 90 days, more than in games like Call of Duty: Warzone, Overwatch, or the new hit Pokémon Legends: Arceus.

And the ASMR category is growing, as more and more streamers join – in the last 90 days alone, there were over 18,000 new streamers.

Also, streamer TheDanDangler complained about Twitch: Streamer complains after ban about Twitch’s extreme double standards

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. SullyGnome

Everything about the Ranked Mode in CoD Vanguard – Ranks, Rewards, Rules

Call of Duty: Vanguard features a game mode that allows you to play by the rules of the official “Call of Duty: League”. We explain how this works and what rewards you can secure on MeinMMO.

What is Ranked Play? Basically, you play by the rules of the ESports league “Call of Duty: League” and secure new ranks and rewards with each event.

In Ranked Play, there is a clear, skill-based matchmaking system: You will only match with players who are as skilled as you are.

We will show you the rules, which equipment is prohibited, and what bonuses guarantee you in the matches.

Ranked Play is usually only for tryhards

Why should I play Ranked? The mode selects teammates for you who are at your skill level. If you’re the type of player who wants to improve with every match and loves to compete with others – then jump into Ranked mode.

Generally, you’ll encounter more tryhards here who give it their all and leave little room for errors.

However, Ranked Play could also be interesting for you if you’ve had enough of all the killstreaks in regular matches. Most are prohibited in Ranked Play.

What are the general rules? Generally, the rules are like in a normal match. However, there are some restrictions and extra rules:

  • Normal rules for player health
  • Only 4vs4 matches
  • Only certain modes and maps
  • Rules prohibit some equipment in the game
  • Team damage is enabled
  • Point penalties for leaving a match
  • No shared matchmaking with too strong or too weak teammates
cod vanguard league play general rules

What modes are played? The Ranked matches are set to 3 modes that only run on a selected number of maps. At the start of the mode, the following maps and modes were available:

  • CDL Control
    • Maps: Gavutu, Desert Siege
  • CDL Search & Destroy
    • Maps: Casablanca, Berlin, Hotel Royale, Desert Siege
  • CDL Hardpoint
    • Maps: Casablanca, Berlin, Gavutu, Desert Siege

The modes and maps may change over time. But you can only play the currently specified content in Ranked Play.

cod vanguard league play game modes and maps

What is prohibited? Many weapons, attachments, and equipment cannot be used in Ranked Play. Killstreaks and field upgrades are also restricted.

In the selection with your loadouts, you’ll see which combinations are allowed in Ranked Play.

Loadouts with restricted items are identified by a triangular symbol with an exclamation mark. Here, you need to check which part of the setup does not fit.

We will provide you with the complete list of excluded items at the start of Ranked Play here. However, there may be changes to it over time:

cod vanguard league play excluded items

Ranks, Stars, Divisions – How to Progress

How do I rank up? Each week, 2 ranked events take place, and at the end of an event, you earn points for your “Star Account”.

If you collect 7 stars, you will rank up.

Points are only awarded at the end of an event, and each match rewards you with points corresponding to your performance.

If you play an event, you start with 200 points for the first match. After that, you earn 100 points for each win and an additional 20 points for the first 5 wins of the day.

If you lose a match, you will lose points. If you leave the match early, you will lose points and an extra penalty of minus 50 points on top of that.

cod vanguard league play points distribution events

What does my “Division” mean? In each new season, the first 5 matches in Ranked Play are “Skill Assessments”.

Depending on your performance, Vanguard will place you into a division after these 5 matches, determining which opponents you will match with.

After that, your performance in your matches will determine whether you rank up or down in the divisions.

This actually limits with whom you can play together. If you have a teammate who is only a “Participant” and you are already “Advanced”, you cannot start a shared match.

You may be at most one skill level apart, otherwise it is not possible to start matchmaking together.

cod vanguard league play divisions

What progress remains? Ultimately, only your “Ranked Play Rank” remains over the seasons. All other progress resets.

At the end of an event, you will earn points for your Ranked Play Rank, and you will have to fight for points again in the next event.

Your division resets each season – you will then always have to complete 5 matches for skill assessments.

You will also receive your rewards based on your Ranked Play Rank.

Ranked Play awards special emblems and calling cards

What do I get from Ranked Play? The mode is not worth it just for the rewards. There are emblems, calling cards for every 5th rank, and at rank 50 a new operator skin.

In Ranked Play, it’s more about the altered experience compared to regular matches.

The rules are closely aligned with the gameplay of the “Call of Duty: League” and bring a competitive experience in CoD that is as close to professionals as possible – unless you organize your own matches.

cod vanguard league play rewards

The Ranked matches are a great way to experience Call of Duty: Vanguard in a completely different way.

Teammates and opponents often take the session more seriously, and just by the absence of most killstreaks, a completely different dynamic is created.

If you want to experience the mode with friends, it’s best to always play together. Otherwise, you run the risk of landing in different divisions.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

A survival shooter on Steam advertises with boredom and 95% of players love it

Deathly Stillness does not think much of itself either. On Steam, it calls itself “boring” and advises players not to expect too much. Still, over 10,000 people love it on Steam. MeinMMO explains why.

“This is a boring third-person zombie game with no story” – that’s how 死寂 (Deathly Stillness) describes itself on Steam. The second selling point on the Steam page hits the same note:

Please have no high expectations for the game; it is just a game I made for the tutorial. There is no gameplay, no story, just entertainment.

Official description of Deathly Stillness on Steam

But players of Deathly Stillness find anything but “boring”: 95% of currently 11,500 reviews are positive. In the last 30 days, it was even 97% of 575 ratings.

What the free-to-play game is about and why it is popular despite its self-critical marketing, you can find out here.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from Spotify that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the Spotify content
In the MeinMMO podcast, we tell you what the most important shooter releases are at the beginning of 2022.

Simple F2P Zombie Shooter with Snappy Gameplay

What kind of game is this? Deathly Stillness is a zombie shooter from a third-person perspective. The game is currently divided into 3 levels:

  • Highway
  • Village
  • Chinese Alley

You choose the appearance of your character (male, female, or crazier options like anime girls in tight bunny costumes), one of two weapons (AKM or SCAR), and the level of your choice. Then you can start.

The levels differ not only in atmosphere and length but also in objectives. On the highway, you need to kill 30 zombies, while in the Chinese alley, you must find the origin of the zombies.

The game is not very extensive, but it plays very smoothly. Graphically, the game can impress, and the controls are very precise. The gunplay also makes a good impression with snappy headshots and striking explosions from your guns.

Nevertheless, the shooter is more of a tech demo than a fully-fledged game. Its popularity is not only due to the quality of what is offered but also to the story behind its development.

Game Originated from a Challenge: “Make a Zombie Game in Half an Hour”

What makes the game so special? Deathly Stillness is created by Chen Jiacheng, a user on China’s YouTube equivalent – the website bilibili. He currently has about 584,000 followers there (via bilibili).

Chen Jiacheng specializes in developing games in the Unreal Engine and had a challenge a few months ago. He wanted to create a zombie game in half an hour. This was to be a kind of tutorial video for his viewers, as he himself states on the Steam website.

You can see how this challenge looks in fast motion in the bilibili video of the developer. Since its release on Steam, the game has been continuously developed, and a new update was released on February 16, 2022.

What do players think? To make it easier for his fans to play this shooter, he made it available on Steam as a F2P game on September 4, 2021, and suddenly it became internationally known there.

The German YouTuber and esports team founder Maximillian “HandOfBlood” Knabe checked out the game and was completely baffled:

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

By now, hundreds of thousands of players have downloaded the “boring” shooter on Steam, and at this point, over 11,500 people have rated it – and extremely positively.

Reviews on Steam say:

  • “Really well-made game. Satisfying gunplay and good controls. Feels like a trial or beta of an AAA game” (via Steam)
  • “I would pay full price for such a game!” (via Steam)
  • “Absolutely fantastic! I have around 1,300 play hours in DayZ, and for how ‘little’ this game offers, it surpasses many zombie shooters by far!” (via Steam)

Even though the developer does not want to promise too much, he is likely to tinker with this “boring” zombie shooter for a while longer. “Please keep an eye on this game on Steam,” it says prominently at the bottom of the screen.

Does this shown interest you? Or have you perhaps already checked out the game? Let us know in the comments!

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. steamdb.info

Pokémon GO: Johto Tour in Gold or Silver? You have a favorite

For the Pokémon GO Tour: Johto, ticket buyers can choose between the silver and gold editions. We asked you in a survey which color you would choose. And you have a winner.

What is it about? Those who buy a ticket for the Johto Tour in Pokémon GO for about 12 € have to decide before the event starts which version of the ticket they want to use. There is a choice between the silver edition and the gold edition.

The differences are in which Pokémon you attract exclusively through the incense and for which monsters your shiny chances are increased.

You voted – What are you playing?

What kind of survey is this? We also asked on February 19, which edition you will choose for the Johto tour. The options were “Gold”, “Silver”, and “Still unsure”.

As of February 22 at 1:15 PM, 2,275 readers have already voted on MeinMMO. Each person can choose a maximum of one option.

This is your winner: As of now, there is a clear winner in the survey.

  • 1024 participants say Silver. That corresponds to a share of 45%
  • 676 participants vote for Gold. That corresponds to a share of 30%
  • 575 participants are “Still unsure”, which accounts for a share of 25% in the survey

Currently, the silver edition is a clear winner for you. However, the “still unsure” candidates can still have a significant impact on the outcome.

Pokémon-GO-Editionen-Johto-Tour
A summary of increased shiny chances for the gold and silver editions

Especially the shiny Larvitar seems to be a reason for many trainers to choose the silver edition.

The Johto Tour starts this coming Saturday and brings a lot of exciting content to you:

Have you already decided on one of the two editions? Then let us know in the comments which Pokémon was the argument for choosing the gold or silver edition.

If you play together with friends, it is wise for each of you to choose a different edition. For research and collector tasks, it will be important to have access to all Pokémon from the different editions.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

WoW: “I have no time for games” – The story of Sylvanas Windrunner

We take a look at one of the most important characters in World of Warcraft: The Dark Lady, Lady Sylvanas Windrunner. What is her story?

World of Warcraft features many characters with extensive backstories. These figures often have a significant impact on the course of the story. However, not all lore information can be found in the game or is presented there in an appealing manner. This is particularly frustrating for well-known characters.

As we find ourselves in the final stages of the “Shadowlands” expansion, which places a strong focus on Sylvanas Windrunner (originally “Windrunner”), we have updated this article. The story now goes up to the start of WoW Patch 9.2: Eternity’s End.

[toc]

The Ranger General of Silvermoon

Sylvanas Windrunner was part of a respected family of High Elves. Besides her two well-known sisters Alleria and Vereesa, she has at least two more brothers named Lirath and Sylvos.

After Sylvanas joined the Rangers, an “elite unit” of Quel’thalas, she quickly rose through their ranks and became the Ranger General of Silvermoon, thus the military leader of a large part of the High Elf forces.

WoW Sylvanas Ranger General
Sylvanas as Ranger General of Silvermoon.

Only her defense against the Orcs and their dragons (during Warcraft II) is truly noteworthy – a battle ultimately won by the Elves.

“I have my own reasons for revenge” – The Invasion of the Scourge

For a few years, peace reigned in Quel’thalas, and apart from minor skirmishes with forest trolls or murlocs, the woods were safe. Yet, this would soon change. During the Third War (Warcraft III), Arthas, then still a Death Knight and servant of the Lich King, reached the elven lands of Quel’thalas with his Scourge army of undead.

After the first towns fell to the Scourge, Sylvanas and her Rangers intervened. However, the relentless and numerous enemies forced the Elves to retreat further and further. Although Sylvanas withdrew behind several walls and even brought down bridges, Arthas was only temporarily slowed.

Realizing her impending defeat, Sylvanas tried to warn the capital Silvermoon – but the warning did not reach them as every scout was stopped by Arthas.

In a final desperate battle, Sylvanas confronted Arthas and was struck down by him.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

“What fortune is this curse supposed to bring?” – The Queen of the Banshees

However, Sylvanas did not die but was severely wounded, captured, and later brought back to Arthas. She pleaded for a “clean death,” but Arthas reminded her of how bothersome she had been and how often she had tried to thwart his plans. As “payment” for these offenses, peace would certainly be the last thing he would grant Sylvanas.

Arthas desecrated Sylvanas’ body and spirit with necromancy and turned her into the first Banshee.

Banshee: A Banshee is a bodiless (but visible and audible) spirit. Besides their horrifying, bone-chilling wail, Banshees have the ability to possess dead and living bodies and use them as their own bodies.

The transformation turned Sylvanas into a slave of the Lich King and ensured that she stood by Arthas as his servant. Her body was locked in an iron coffin and removed, preventing her from using it anymore.

WoW Sylvanas

At Arthas’ side, she killed countless High Elves and ultimately helped him conquer the Sunwell of the Elves. Arthas utilized the magics of the well to resurrect the necromancer Kel’thuzad as a Lich. The Sunwell was desecrated, lost its magical powers, and the High Elves thereby lost their source of magic.

Under the supervision of the Dreadlords, Sylvanas remained in Lordaeron and managed to regain control of her body.

Dreadlord: Dreadlords, also known as Nathrezim, are agents of the Burning Legion and therefore demons. They are known to be particularly cunning and rarely resort to brute force. Cunning, deception, and political intrigue are their tools to sow chaos long before the more brutal forces of the Legion arrive. The most well-known Dreadlords are Tychondrius, Varimathras, Balnazaar, and Detheroc.
It was later revealed that the Dreadlords actually hail from the Shadowlands and are the children of Lord Denathrius – the ruler of Revendreth.

After the invasion of the Legion at Mount Hyjal failed, Arthas returned to the former human kingdom of Lordaeron and ordered Kel’thuzad and Sylvanas to obliterate all living beings in Lordaeron as tribute to the Lich King Ner’zhul. Lordaeron was completely devastated in the process.

“My will is my own” – Free Will

While Sylvanas followed Arthas’ orders, she and some of her Banshees noticed that the Lich King’s control was waning. The Dreadlords informed Sylvanas that this was due to the diminishing power of the Lich King – and thus also Arthas’. The Dreadlords planned to bring Lordaeron under their control and wanted Sylvanas’ help. She was willing to assist, but only under her terms.

The Dreadlords planned an assassination attempt on Arthas, and Sylvanas devised a Plan B. After the demons failed, Sylvanas’ Banshees feigned loyalty to Arthas and accompanied him to a supposedly safe spot in the woods. There, Sylvanas lay in wait and wounded Arthas with a poisoned dart. Arthas demanded that the former ranger end his life, but she refused: he should endure the same suffering that she had faced in undeath.

wow sylvanas banshee form Titel
Sylvanas, in her Banshee war form.

However, it did not come to that. Kel’thuzad came to Arthas’ aid, obliterated the Banshees, and forced Sylvanas to flee.

“Are we not slaves to this torture?” – The Founding of Undercity

Arthas and Kel’thuzad departed for Northrend to serve the Lich King. The Dreadlords declared themselves the new rulers of Lordaeron to forge further plans. When Sylvanas refused to submit, she was threatened by the Dreadlord Varimathras, who warned that those who did not comply would meet a bitter end.

Sylvanas knew that she and her few Banshees were insufficient for victory. So she controlled powerful leaders of Orcs, bandits, gnolls, and murlocs with her Banshees to bolster her ranks.

The troops of Varimathras were soundly defeated, and the Dreadlord begged for his life, offering Sylvanas his help against the other Dreadlords.

Hearthstone Sylvanas Full Art

One by one, Sylvanas and Varimathras killed the Dreadlords Detheroc and Balnazaar, as well as the human Captain Garithos, whom they temporarily used as a weapon.

Once all enemies were subdued, Sylvanas declared that she would henceforth rule over Lordaeron and the Plaguelands – alongside Varimathras. The undead gathered, and those who regained their free will joined the new people of the “Forsaken”. Undercity was founded in the ruins of Lordaeron.

“Give the order” – For the Horde!

In the time between Warcraft III and the beginning of World of Warcraft, the Forsaken joined the Horde. There are not many details about this process, and envoys from both sides were probably regularly killed.

Ultimately, it was the Earthen Ring under the leadership of the Tauren Hamul Runetotem that moved Thrall, the leader of the Horde, to seek a conversation with the Banshee Queen.

The Earthen Ring: The Earthen Ring is a cross-faction, neutral faction of shamans dedicated to the study and protection of the elements. They can communicate with the elementals and call upon their aid when Azeroth needs it.

The Earthen Ring convinced Thrall that the Forsaken could one day be “healed”. Thrall, in turn, felt pity for the Forsaken, as like the Orcs, they were a people that had no real place in this world.

From the perspective of the Forsaken, joining the Horde was pure self-interest. Additional protection against attacks from the Alliance, who might want to retake Lordaeron, was welcome to Sylvanas.

WoW Sylvanas Time Model
Sylvanas over the years, from Vanilla to Battle for Azeroth.

“I have no time for small talk” – The Battle for Undercity

Years later, the Horde and the Alliance set out separately to battle Arthas, who had become the Lich King, in Northrend. Sylvanas is still seeking revenge as she has not yet come to terms with her undeath and remains furious that Arthas escaped her.

During a joint attack by the Horde and Alliance on the “Gate of Wrath”, the entrance to Arthas’ fortress, a political coup occurs among the Forsaken. The first apothecary Putress, along with the Dreadlord Varimathras, takes control of Undercity. All troops at the Gate of Wrath are killed by a toxic plague.

Apothecary: The apothecaries of Undercity are powerful alchemists who research and develop various poisons, torture methods, and methods of mind control. Besides delaying the decay of the undead body, their greatest achievements lie in the creation of the “plague.” This chemical weapon is a poison gas that kills all life and even undead and is considered one of the most horrific weapons in all of Azeroth.

Sylvanas, the Horde, and even the Alliance seek vengeance. The troops return to Undercity and besiege the city under the grip of Putress and Varimathras. Both coup leaders are killed. The remaining troops of the Horde and Alliance part peacefully only because Jaina Proudmoore teleports the Alliance troops to safety.

“Show them no mercy” – Revenge on the Lich King

Back in Northrend, the final offensive against the Lich King Arthas begins. After many losses, the Lich King is slain by combined forces, even though Sylvanas is not present for this act.

When Sylvanas learned that she had finally achieved her revenge, the hatred that had kept her moving vanished. Her undeath had become hollow, and she had no more purpose in sight.

WoW Legion Sylvanas Cinematic

After a time, she returned to the Frost Throne and recognized that the Lich King had been replaced – a new person sat upon the Frost Throne. Disappointed by this turn of events, she concluded that she had achieved her personal goal, which had begun so many years ago in the woods of Quel’thalas.

She decided to end her existence and threw herself from the Icecrown Citadel to be impaled on the spikes of Saronite. This would not only destroy her body but also her soul, finally granting her peace.

“Leave no one alive” – The Power of the Val’kyr

But Sylvanas was stopped. In free fall, she was caught by nine Val’kyr, powerful warriors of the Lich King, perverted in their task by undeath. They were still bound to the will of the Lich King but wanted to make a pact with Sylvanas.

By showing her several visions, the Val’kyr convinced the Banshee Queen that her life should not come to an end just yet. A people needed her, and she still had her destiny.

She made a pact with the Val’kyr, who then blessed Sylvanas with a brutal new ability: the power of resurrection.

WoW Sylvanas Artwork

The Val’kyr are capable of turning dead bodies into undead and thus Forsaken. Sylvanas finally had a way to grow her own people.

She returned to Lordaeron, ordered the cemeteries of the towns and villages to be excavated, and recruited her new army from the corpses for a campaign against the human kingdom of Gilneas.

Gilneas was soundly defeated. King Genn Greymane even lost his son Liam here, further fueling the king’s personal hatred towards Sylvanas.

The complete short story featuring Sylvanas and her encounter with the Val’kyr can be read on the official Blizzard website.

“We are the Forsaken” – Warchief of the Horde

With the renewed attack of the Burning Legion on Azeroth during the WoW expansion “Legion”, the world once again fell apart. Many heroes and leaders died, including the current Warchief of the Horde, Vol’jin. With his last breaths, he chose Sylvanas as his successor, because he had seen a “vision” that made it necessary.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

From now on, Sylvanas was the official leader of the Horde, even though there was little mention of this in Legion.

Over the years and several battles, the number of Sylvanas’ Val’kyr diminished further, especially when they died in battle or sacrificed themselves to resurrect their fallen mistress.

Thus, Sylvanas hatched a plan in Legion to enslave the leader of the “free” Val’kyr, Eyir, in Stormheim to create endless new Val’kyr. This was prevented at the last second by Genn Greymane, as shown in this cinematic:

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

“We kill everyone who stands in our way” – The Fight for Azeroth

With the defeat of the Burning Legion, the conflicts in Azeroth appear to be temporarily resolved. However, shortly thereafter, a new, mysterious ore appears all over the world: Azerite. It is so full of energy that it could completely disrupt the balance of power between the Horde and the Alliance. Shortly after the discovery of Azerite, the Horde begins extensive mining operations.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

As the Horde and Alliance travel to Silithus to dispute the emerging Azerite deposits, Sylvanas executes a plan that may be one of the most consequential moments in World of Warcraft: She led the Horde toward the Night Elf capital, Teldrassil. The lands of the Night Elves were conquered, and the initial plan to hold the tree and its inhabitants hostage was seemingly spontaneously changed: The tree is set ablaze, and more than 90% of the Night Elf population is extinguished.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

This act sets many processes in motion simultaneously. A renewed war between the Horde and Alliance breaks out, driving both sides to the limits of their resources. In a direct counterattack, the Alliance retakes the former Lordaeron, Undercity, from the Forsaken. Before the city can fall into the hands of the Alliance, Sylvanas floods the entire city with the deadly plague, rendering the area unusable for years.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

The actual war then unfolds in the island realms of Kul Tiras and Zandalar. The Horde allies with the Zandalari trolls to gain access to their fleet, while the Alliance attempts to do the same in Kul Tiras.

While the war rages, more and more members of the Horde turn against Sylvanas, who can no longer support her cruel actions. A small group of separatists forms, including the former Highlord Saurfang. These resistance fighters ally with the Alliance, which gradually gains the upper hand in the war.

Ultimately, a Mak’gora, a traditional duel at the gates of Orgrimmar, is held to determine the fate of the Horde. Sylvanas fights against Saurfang and easily kills him but loses the last trace of the Horde’s trust and flees in her Banshee form.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

In the aftermath of these events, the Horde and Alliance negotiate a truce. While most races yearn for this kind of peace, especially the Night Elves (and their close allies, the Worgen) want nothing to do with peace.

“This world is a prison” – Pact with the Jailer

The “Shadowlands” expansion begins with Sylvanas returning to the Frost Throne. There, she battles the reigning Lich King Bolvar, and this new magic is once again put to use, which apparently grants Sylvanas great power. Bolvar loses the fight.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

Instead of putting on the Helm of Domination herself, she shatters it. This causes the sky over Icecrown to break open and breaches the veil to the Shadowlands – the “afterlife” of the Warcraft universe.

Helm of Domination: The Helm of Domination is imbued with powerful magic, allowing the wearer to control the undead Scourge. Whoever wears the helm becomes the current Lich King. However, the Helm of Domination is not just an item for control – the wearer is simultaneously dominated by a dark presence, the Jailer.

Shortly thereafter, notable leaders from the Alliance and the Horde are abducted by winged creatures and likewise taken to the Shadowlands. Sylvanas now stands beside the ominous Jailer, also known as “Zovaal,” who turns out to be the “mastermind” behind many plans of the past decades. Not only is he responsible for the Lich King, but his indirect influence also made Sylvanas the Warchief.

The Jailer benefits from all the beings that died in the last war. The souls did not peacefully transition to the afterlife but were sent to the Maw; the realm of the Jailer. Here, the souls increased his power and thus also Sylvanas’.

Jailer: The Jailer was once one of the guardians of a Shadowland but sought to betray his brothers and sisters. For this, he was imprisoned in the “Maw.” The Maw is the place where the most corrupt and vile souls are imprisoned for all eternity. Through cunning manipulation, he managed to divert the flow of souls so that all souls came directly to the Maw – no matter how good or evil they were in life.

It was revealed that Sylvanas had been conspiring with the Jailer for a long time and intends to assist him. The Jailer believes that he wants to break the eternal cycle of life and death and reshape the entire cosmos according to new laws. Problems such as life and death, and thus also the suffering of her people, the Forsaken, would no longer exist in this new world order.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

As the Jailer stands on the threshold of carrying out his plans, he reveals that he has quite different plans and wants to create a world in which everyone must serve him. This, in turn, awakens memories in Sylvanas of her time as a slave under the Lich King, and she turns against the Jailer.

Zovaal easily deflects Sylvanas’ attack and returns to her the part of her soul that Frostmourne had taken. The Jailer then disappears through a portal while Sylvanas, at the mercy of the leaders of the Horde and Alliance, falls to the ground.

Start video
WoW: New Sylvanas Cinematic Explained What Everyone Wanted to Know

At the start of Patch 9.2: Eternity’s End, Sylvanas is imprisoned by the forces of the Horde and Alliance. Her body is in a comatose state, where the two parts of her soul attempt to become one being again. Throughout this process, Sylvanas constantly relives the atrocities she has committed over the years, while the part of the righteous ranger general within her cannot cope with this truth.

We hope this article has given you a little more knowledge about the Dark Lady. For the Banshee Queen, Mistress of the Forsaken, Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner!


The story of Jaina in World of Warcraft is also important. We have written Jaina’s life story here.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. wowwiki.wikia.com

Destiny 2: You won’t want to play the most popular class at the start of Witch Queen

Destiny 2: Witch Queen is currently undergoing its most important maintenance and players were able to vote on MeinMMO on which class they will start the new expansion. We analyzed our survey and found a surprise.

What kind of survey was it? We at MeinMMO took the opportunity for a survey thanks to the release of Witch Queen. We asked the MeinMMO community: Which class will you start in Witch Queen? Our readers had the chance to choose the Hunter, the Warlocks, or the Titans.

According to our survey, a total of 2,672 users participated on MeinMMO (as of February 22, 2022, 12:12 PM). Not only are the participant numbers astonishing, but also the result of the voting.

Hunters, the “most popular class” was overtaken

What was the result? In third place are the proud Titans with 655 votes. In second place are the Hunters with 848 votes. The first place is held by the Warlocks with 1,169 votes. However, what is surprising is the winner’s result, as it is normally assumed by many in the community that the Hunter is the most popular class in Destiny 2.

destiny-2-jäger
Hunters with their well-known long capes

What could be the reason? Either not all Hunters were willing to vote, or Void 3.0 has made the Warlock practically a very good option for combat and support.

The Hunter and Titan will have to go through some challenges at the launch of Witch Queen. Bungie has already announced in advance that both classes will receive a “nerf.” The Titan will distribute fewer damage bonuses and the Void Bow of the Hunter loses its support effect.

This information might have swayed the Guardians in their choice and led some to prefer the flying Warlock over the jumping Hunter.

What do the users on MeinMMO say about their choice? Many players remain loyal to their main. There is a colorful mix of all classes. Despite the results and the Void adjustments, our user KingFritz stays true to his Hunter:

I have been playing my Hunter since 2014. It would be a disgrace to him if I changed my main character. I occasionally use the Warlock as well. The Titan just goes along in PL and is only a bounty carrier. In fact, there is really only time for one character if I want to do as much as possible. I am definitely looking forward to it.

KingFritz is not averse to using his other classes, such as the Warlock for different activities. To ensure the Titan doesn’t gather dust, he is used as a practical “bounty storage.”

Soon many Guardians will burst into Savathûn’s Throne World and do a little cleaning. Are you also ready to finally grab some new loot and uncover the mystery of the light theft? Let us know!

If you want to know about the current server status of Destiny 2, we have prepared a ticker for you:

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Diablo 3: Leaderboard of Season 25 – Which class is the winner?

In Diablo 3 Season 25 has been running for several weeks now. We are looking at the rankings and checking which class is currently winning the solo push.

What’s going on in Diablo 3? Season 25 started on December 10 in Blizzard’s hack and slash game. As the highlight of this chapter, there are special soul shards that you can socket into your builds to unleash powerful forces.

These soul shards also affect the rankings. We will show you which class is currently leading the rankings at the end of Season 25 and which is lagging behind.

Diablo 3: Leaderboards from Season 25 on February 22

This is what we are showing here: We have looked at the current rankings from Season 25 in Diablo 3. Here we present you the current standings of the European leaderboards in softcore mode for solo players. The times are taken from the “Overall” category, which counts all sets of the respective classes.

The state of the data is from February 22, 2021, at 11:45 AM.

  1. Monk with GR 150 in ~ 3 minutes and 34 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
  2. Crusader with GR 150 in ~ 5 minutes and 24 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
  3. Sorcerer with GR 150 in ~ 6 minutes and 37 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
  4. Necromancer with GR 150 in ~ 6 minutes and 45 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
  5. Demon Hunter with GR 150 in ~ 6 minutes and 49 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
  6. Witch Doctor with GR 150 in ~ 8 minutes and 10 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
  7. Barbarian with GR 150 in ~ 9 minutes and 22 seconds (Here goes to the hero profile on Diablo3.com)
Diablo 3 Season 25 Leaderboard February 22

What builds are being played? In the list, we have linked each hero profile with which the record was set. Whether the builds used to set the times are still there is not guaranteed. By looking at the hero profile, you get an insight into which skills and items the characters are currently equipped with.

What stands out? By now, all classes have managed to clear the largest Greater Rift at level 150. The only differences now are in the time needed. Early in the season, the Monk and Crusader were already high up in the rankings.

Barbarians were already in our rankings check of Diablo 3 on December 24 in 7th place and are still there today. It is noticeable in the rankings that some results were only set a few days ago. The race for the highest positions is therefore not yet over.

The battle in the Season 25 rankings is not over yet. So if you want to achieve a good placement at the end of the season, you still have time for that.

It is still unclear how long the current season will remain active. Our prediction for the end of Season 25 and the start of Season 26 can be found on our website MeinMMO. Are you still active in the rankings or are you already waiting for the next season and have set D3 aside?

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Elden Ring: All info about preload, start time and download size on PS5 and Xbox

In about a week, the release of Elden Ring is coming. But can the game be downloaded in advance? How much space do you need on your hard drive? MeinMMO gives you an overview.

When will the game be released? The release is on Friday, February 25th. Then the action RPG from FromSoftware will be available for PC via Steam, PS4 and PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One.

Elden Ring will be a pretty extensive game with a huge game world. So how large will the download likely be?

For sure: Yes, there is a preload for Elden Ring, and it has already partially started. The download size is surprisingly moderate for the expected size – at least on PS4 and PS5.

If you are looking for general information about Elden Ring, we recommend our video with all information in 2 minutes:

Start video
Everything you need to know about Elden Ring – in 2 minutes

Elden Ring – Start times for preload & download size

When does the preload start?

This depends on the platform. On Xbox, you can already download Elden Ring, while PC and PlayStation players will have to wait until February 23rd.

How large is the download?

PS4 & PS5: 45 GB (according to PlayStation Game Size)
Xbox: 49 GB (according to Xbox Store)
PC: 60 GB (according to System Requirements)

When does Elden Ring start?

PC players will start at midnight on the night of February 24th to 25th. Console players can start an hour earlier at 11:00 PM.

Is there a Day-1 patch?

Yes. Elden Ring will also receive its first patch at launch. It will address several performance issues.

Is there crossplay?

Unfortunately, only limited. PS4 and PS5 players can play together the Elden Ring multiplayer. The same goes for Xbox One and Xbox Series users. PC players are excluded, and crossplay between Microsoft and Sony consoles is not possible.

Can we expect server issues at launch?

This is not a huge MMO. Normally there shouldn’t be any problems. If the servers are offline, you can simply continue playing offline solo.

Some PC players report in the Elden Ring subreddit that they can already download the game in advance. However, this does not seem to be the case for every pre-orderer.

Apparently, it depends on which region you live in. But there are also conflicting reports here. A Russian player reports that the preload is already running for him, while another player from Russia cannot start the download.

Some lucky ones can already start the download on Steam, but it seems to be only a few.

Update 1.01 for Elden Ring is supposed to bring initial improvements

This is what we know so far about the first update: According to PlayStation Game Size, the first patch for PS4 is expected to be around 8 GB and will deliver the following:

  • Some new features
  • Balance optimizations
  • Improved performance and usability
  • Some bug fixes

These details are not particularly detailed, but they do provide an initial hint at the improvements at launch.

It is not known how large the update will be on other platforms. However, it is expected to be in similar dimensions.

First, the information from the Twitter channel needs to be confirmed. However, the data from PlayStation Game Size is usually reliable as it is based on real data.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

One of the largest German Twitch events starts in March with Season 3

The survival game Rust is still very popular on Twitch. The hype revolved mainly around 2 servers run by and with streamers. This year, the 3rd season of the project “RUSTplatz” is starting and the community is full of excitement. All the previous info about the project is revealed to you by MeinMMO.

What kind of project is RUSTplatz?

  • RUSTplatz emerged from the hype around the game in early 2021. Content creators from the USA set the trend with the survival game, after which Spanish creators also produced content about Rust.
  • The waves reached Germany, where after disputes and discussions a fragmentation into 3 different major projects took place.
  • In the end, however, the most successful, harmonious, and well-known was the RUSTplatz server, on which many famous personalities participated.
  • Only selected streamers who were whitelisted were allowed on RUSTplatz. Role-playing and PvP took place there while players built their bases.
Insight into the survival game Rust.

Season 3 of the most successful Rust project in Germany starts

Who is involved? The main organizers and server hosts are once again the Rocket Beans, Bonjwa, and Dhalucard. Which streamers, besides themselves, are allowed to participate has not yet been announced.

However, maexdaemaege posted in the forum of the Rocket Beans that they want to continue with the principle of the previous seasons: There will be a whitelist, and only people who the organizers already know or can vouch for will be allowed to participate.

So you might be able to expect familiar faces like JenNyan, PietSmiet, or AnniTheDuck again. There were over 112 players in the last season of RUSTplatz.

When does Season 3 of RUSTplatz start? It is supposed to kick off this March. A specific date has not yet been mentioned, only an official trailer on Twitter confirmed this.

https://twitter.com/TheKerrag/status/1494345509993164801?s=20&t=yXKSgxS_lkDJsneu2GT9Kw

What rules were there on the server? Besides the whitelist and that you had to be a streamer to participate in the project, the server was also online daily only from 7 PM to 1 AM.

Additionally, players were not allowed to kill other players just for fun, but only after prior role-play and if it made sense. This rule did not apply if you were in the designated “Kill on Sight” zones.

Finally, the text chat was disabled, and you could only communicate in-game via voice chat.

It is expected that approximately these rules will come into force again, as they worked well last time and provided entertainment for the community.

What do you think about the start of Season 3 of the RUSTplatz project? Did you follow the previous seasons, and do you have any highlights in mind? Or is this the first time you’ve heard of it? Are you perhaps curious about the action now? Feel free to write it in the comments.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Destiny 2: Download of Witch Queen on PS4 delayed by several hours – What’s going on?

PS4 players will probably not be on board this evening when Witch launches. As if this disadvantage weren’t already mean enough, a bug has now caused them to be able to press the download button only at launch, while others might already be in the game.

Yesterday, PS4 players cursed their console because they were expecting a mega download for the preload in Destiny 2 for the “Witch Queen” preload. Basically, they are forced to download the entire game again, while all other players are “only” getting an update.

  • On PC and PS5, only about 20 GB need to be downloaded.
  • Only PS4 players have to deal with a download of the complete game at 72 GB.
  • Furthermore, due to a bug, they can only load the new content from 6 PM.

This made it clear that PS4 players will not be present at the launch of Witch Queen tonight, if all goes well. Because such a large amount of data takes, depending on the internet connection, quite a while to download completely.

Update 6:50 PM: The download should now also be available on PS4. PS4 players should start Destiny 2 and wait until they are through the queue. Afterwards, you will automatically be taken to the Store, where you can then download the game.

And this, despite Bungie announcing in one of their recent blogs that it should soon get better specifically for PS4 players. The required content should actually be able to be downloaded in the background during downtime. However, this has now changed due to a bug.

On Twitter, Bungie shared the bad news with the players:

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from Twitter that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the Twitter content

Why is the download on the PS4 so large? The PS4 infrastructure is to blame, and it’s also the reason why PS4 console players are probably cursing their old PlayStation now.

A new PS5 takes significantly less time to patch game files compared to a PS4. So those who primarily play on PS4 have a major disadvantage today, at the launch of Witch Queen.

Crossplay is no solution either: Destiny 2 offers crossplay as an option, but anyone planning to switch now should consider that this comes at a cost.

  • Anyone wanting to switch platforms must have purchased the new expansion for that platform as well.
  • The new Season Pass will be activated on the platform where you log in first.

What does the community say? On Reddit, PS4 players seem to have come to terms with their fate. Player Fit-Tackle-6107 has already written off his invitation to tea with Savathun:

My gut feeling is that we will arrive too late to the party. The speed at which games download/install (at least on my PS4) is painfully slow. If the update is not available until the servers go live, I won’t be able to play the game today.

The German Destiny 2 community is also “not amused”, as Destiny 2 player Patsipat put it. For him, there was more than enough time for Bungie or Sony to have avoided this problem in advance.

A damn problem with the preload? 3 months more time and a problem with the preload? Who is it on now? Sony or Bungie? Sometimes I wonder if anything gets tested in this industry at all. Then the planned LAN evening goes down the drain….

Are you affected by the PS4 error and upset that you might not be able to participate in the launch right away? Or is that not a problem because you were planning to start later anyway? Let us know in the comments whether you are already thinking about purchasing a PS5.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

CoD Warzone & Vanguard extend double XP in Season 2 – This is how to make the best use of it

Season 2 of CoD Warzone and Vanguard started this month with difficulties. As an apology, there was double XP for a limited time. Now this period has been extended. MeinMMO will tell you until when you can receive double XP and how to make the best use of it.

Season 2 of CoD Warzone Pacific and Vanguard started with a 2-week delay. It wasn’t until February 14 that it finally launched. As an apology, Activision announced numerous gifts for players, including double XP for a limited time.

Until when is there double XP? Originally, the XP rain was supposed to end on February 22 at 7:00 PM. Now Call of Duty has announced via its official Twitter account that it is extending this period by a whole week:

https://twitter.com/CallofDuty/status/1495850903940775937

Thus, you can expect to receive double XP for everything you need experience points for until approximately March 1.

This includes:

  • 2x standard XP for leveling ranks
  • 2x weapon XP
  • 2x operator XP
  • 2x battle pass XP
  • 2x clan XP

To make the best and most effective use of this time in CoD Warzone and Vanguard, we have put together some tips for you.

Tips for CoD Warzone to level up the fastest

How to level up best in Warzone: Currently, there is an incredibly strong method to level up quickly. Although this is time-limited, it won’t interfere with the double XP week.

For this method, you need to play the new Deathmatch mode “Clash”. Select “Caldera Clash” from the main menu.

In the game, you will use bounty missions where you must kill specific enemies from the opposing team. This allows you to level up incredibly quickly, especially with double XP. This way, you also unlock attachments for the “strongest OP weapon in Warzone history” the fastest.

Are there other methods? If Clash isn’t your thing, you can also rely on proven methods from Warzone.

Play the Plunder mode, grab a vehicle, activate contracts, and complete your missions while racing across the Pacific island of Caldera. Especially reconnaissance contracts work very well with this method.

More on the topic
Godzilla and King Kong in CoD Warzone: Insider awakens hope for completely insane events
von Maik Schneider

Tips for CoD Vanguard to level up the fastest

How to level up best in Vanguard: As in other Call of Duty titles, there is a proven method to gather as much XP as possible in the shortest time: a 24/7 playlist of the smallest maps. Currently, this in Vanguard is the playlist “Ship Das Haus 24/7”.

In this playlist, you play non-stop either the tiny maps Shipment and Das Haus. This guarantees furious matches with fast action and many kills, which in turn gives you tons of XP.

Especially the game modes Control, Domination, and Hardpoint are excellent for leveling quickly – provided you are also actively capturing the zones.

So choose your weapon of choice, select the “Ship Das Haus 24/7” playlist and blast your way through the maps until you are satisfied. We also recommend playing some of your favorite music, which makes grinding a lot more fun.

These are our tips for CoD Warzone and Vanguard to make the best use of this double XP rain. Do you have any more tips that we don’t know? Let us know in the comments.

Despite the many gifts at the start of Season 2, not everything went smoothly in CoD. Especially in CoD Vanguard, the latest season has disappointed despite the delay and a lot of content. You can find out why here:

CoD Vanguard fans “are losing patience” – Season 2 update disappoints

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Destiny 2: Witch Queen Release – New Weapons, Raid and Editions

Many have been waiting for this: Bungie has finally presented the next big expansion for Destiny 2 – “The Witch Queen”. Here, we have compiled the most important details for the release that every Destiny fan and interested party should know about the new addon.

What is Witch Queen about? “The Witch Queen” will be the next major expansion for Destiny 2 and will bring numerous new content for Bungie’s action MMO into the game. Originally, the addon was supposed to be released in autumn 2021, but the effects of the global Corona pandemic forced the studio to delay this expansion to “early 2022”.

What is it about? The eponymous Hive Witch Savathûn is an important character in the Destiny universe and has long been pulling the strings behind the Destiny storyline – always from the background. Her trademark and her tools are lies, intrigue, and manipulation. In the recently started Season 15, the prologue to Witch Queen, the Witch Queen is now in the spotlight for the first time and will soon even receive an expansion dedicated to her.

There, Savathûn has granted her Hive soldiers the power of Light. You must enter her Throne World and confront her radiant brood. The challenge is primarily to solve an important riddle at the heart of her intrigues – how did she and her army steal the Light? Guardians will also learn that not only does darkness hold secrets but also Light.

The article is current as of February 24, 2022, and will be updated as we receive new information.

Destiny 2: Witch Queen Release – The Most Important in Brief

  • What kind of version is this? This is a DLC for Destiny 2 that will be released on all platforms.
  • When is the release date? On February 22, 2022.
  • What can I expect? Many new features will be added, such as a weapon forge, a new destination, a new raid, and much more.
  • How much does Destiny 2: Witch Queen cost? The prices range from €39.99 for the Standard Edition to €258.99 for the physical Collector’s Edition from Bungie.

For deeper details on the editions and what to expect, you can find more information at the bottom of the post.

The trailer for Witch Queen: Here, you can take a first look at “The Witch Queen”:

By the way, in our live ticker for the reveal event, we also noted many details for you.

[toc]

Witch Queen Release Date is Set – When is the expansion coming out?

Until recently, it was still said “early in 2022”. In the course of the reveal, however, there is finally a concrete release date. The Witch Queen starts on February 22, 2022.

New Location – Where is Witch Queen set?

As part of the expansion, a new location is being introduced – Savathûn’s massive, deceptive Throne World. Here are some images:

Visually, the whole thing looks, from the first images, somewhat like the popular Dreadnaught of Oryx, the Taken King and Savathûn’s brother, now implemented in a larger and more open form on a planet’s surface, mixed with the Dreaming City.

The Throne World looks diverse – from Savathûn’s shimmering palace to overgrown swamps to dark underground dungeons, there is quite a lot.

New Activity for 6 Players

According to Bungie, the new location will also offer a new 6-player activity in the heart of an ongoing battle for the Throne World – including player matchmaking. Unfortunately, there is no further info on this yet, but here is a first image:

This image shows how 6 Guardians are fighting against the Hive at the foot of Savathûn’s palace.

New Changes in Gambit

In Witch Queen, there will also be changes to the PvEvP mode. An annoying boss will be removed, and adjustments will be made to the ammunition delivery. A freelance mode is also set to be added, where no teams are allowed, and each player joins solo. We have summarized more information for you here:

New Raid

With Witch Queen, the list of available PvE pinnacle activities will be expanded – finally, a new raid is coming again.

This one takes place in the swamps of Savathûn’s Throne World – in a sunken pyramid. There, you will confront an ancient threat that is trapped within. The name of the raid is already known. It will be called “The Oath of the Student”. Furthermore, Bungie said that the raid will somehow continue the campaign of “The Witch Queen”.

The start date of the raid has also been revealed, it will start on March 5, 2022, at 7 PM.

Campaign Gets Harder Difficulty

Previously, the expansion campaigns were completed fairly quickly, some even in a day. While the missions do drive the story forward, they do not offer a real challenge from a gameplay perspective. This will change with Witch Queen.

The campaign of “The Witch Queen” will offer a new legendary difficulty that should be significantly more challenging than the regular experience. So, those who like it hard will get something to bite into – comparable to the pinnacle Nightfall. It appears that the difficulty of the missions will also scale with the size of the fire team.

“Hive Guardians” – Enemies Now Use Light

The Guardians now face dangerous competition. Savathûn has equipped her army with the power of Light and ghosts – how, is still unknown. In short: Even special Hive fighters are now able to use abilities and supers (apparently even Stasis?) and return after death. To eliminate them once and for all, it seems that you also need to destroy their ghosts – just like us Guardians.

New Melee Weapon Comes – The Glaive

With Witch Queen, a new weapon archetype is introduced in Destiny 2 – the Glaive. This energy weapon aims to expand the melee weapon arsenals of the Guardians beyond swords. The new type of weapon will be played from the first-person perspective, as it can not only be swung and used for melee combos but is also capable of firing projectiles. An energy shield also grants it defensive capabilities.

Weapon Crafting Comes

With Witch Queen, not only is a new weapon archetype coming, but also a whole new way for Guardians to expand their arsenal – weapon crafting, the ultimate control over weapons.

While Bungie has not gone into detail here yet, the studio explained: With this new system, it will be possible to create custom weapons with unique combinations of mods, shaders, and advanced stat pools – basically, your own god-roll. For example, you won’t just get your first glaive from a boss or a chest – you will build it through this system.

It is meant to be a combat-oriented crafting and progression system – the more you use these weapons, the more tasks you complete with them, the higher they will level up, and the more powerful they become.

At the launch of “The Witch Queen”, it will be possible to craft all weapons from the Throne World, the new raid weapons, and seasonal weapons. But this is just the beginning of weapon crafting. Over the course of Year 5, more weapons will be added to this system – both old and new.

Trilogy Will Become a Four-Part Series

Witch Queen was supposed to be the second of three interconnected annual expansions with which Bungie would continue Destiny 2 until 2022. The saga around Light and Darkness was supposed to end with the third expansion Lightfall in 2022. However, plans have changed.

The saga around Light and Darkness will reportedly not end as originally planned with the Lightfall expansion, but with The Final Shape. So, another chapter is being added. When exactly remains unclear, however. Destiny 2 will continue for years to come. And then further…

However, what exactly will come after The Final Shape and what exactly is meant by “and beyond” is also unknown at this time. It is speculated that Bungie may aim to integrate all previous content from Destiny 2 and Destiny 1 into the game, thus striving for a complete Destiny experience.

Light Classes Are Being Revised After Stasis Model

This change will likely please many Guardians. Because currently, Stasis is far ahead in terms of customization and individualization options compared to the old Light focuses, offering much more freedom and possibilities.

With Witch Queen, however, Bungie will begin revising the Light classes based on the modular model of the Stasis system – including aspects and fragments. The focus will start with Void, and the other elements, Solar and Arc, will follow in subsequent seasons.

A first impression of this can be found here: Destiny 2 is redesigning old focuses after Stasis model – Here’s a first taste

Witch Queen Preorder – Editions, Contents, Prices, Bonuses

Since the reveal of Witch Queen on the evening of August 24, the upcoming Witch Queen expansion has been available for preorder. But what editions are there? What do they include? How much does it cost? What bonuses are available? And where can you buy the whole thing? You can see that in this overview.

By the way, the “Witch Queen” expansion will NOT be included in the Xbox Game Pass.

Destiny 2: Witch Queen Standard Edition:

Includes:

  • New campaign
  • Weapon crafting
  • New glaive weapon archetype
  • New raid
  • Exotic gear
  • New 6-player activity

Instant unlocks upon pre-order:

  • Exotic Throne World Ghost Shell
  • Exotic Emote “The Enigma”
  • Legendary Emblem

Where to pre-order/buy:

Destiny 2: Witch Queen Deluxe Edition:

Includes:

  • Everything from the Standard Edition
  • Exotic MP with Catalyst and Ornament
  • Access to Seasons 16, 17, 18, and 19
  • 2 Dungeons (released in Year 5)
  • Exotic Throne World Sparrow

Instant unlocks upon pre-order:

  • As in the Standard Edition

Where to pre-order/buy:

Destiny 2: Witch Queen Deluxe Edition + “30 Years of Bungie” Pack:

Includes:

  • Everything from the Standard Edition
  • Everything from the Deluxe Edition
  • New Dungeon
  • Exotic Rocket Launcher “Gjallarhorn” with Catalyst and Ornament
  • New weapons inspired by old Bungie worlds
  • Thorn armor set
  • Bungie streetwear ornament set
  • Marathon ornament set
  • Unique helmet ornament
  • Exotic Sparrows
  • Exotic Ship
  • Emblems, shaders, gestures, and more

Instant unlocks upon pre-order:

  • As in the Standard Edition

Where to pre-order/buy:

Destiny 2: Witch Queen Collector’s Edition (Physical): For Guardians who want the ultimate “Destiny 2: The Witch Queen” experience.

Includes:

  • a digital code for the Witch Queen Deluxe Edition
  • a code for the “30 Years of Bungie” pack
  • a hidden kit for paranormal research
  • a Hive Ghost replica
  • a hidden ID card
  • a lore booklet
  • other mysteries from Savathûn’s Throne World

Please note: PlayStation activation codes are not provided digitally but are instead located on a card in the Collector’s Edition box.

Where to pre-order/buy:

What do you think of the next big expansion for Destiny 2 so far? Has Witch Queen caught your interest with its features? What do you find most exciting so far? Or have you long given up on Destiny – no matter what comes next? Let us and other readers of MeinMMO know in the comments.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

WoW: Cosmic Flux farming in patch 9.2 – Here is where to find the resource

To craft legendary items in World of Warcraft, you need a new resource. We reveal where you can farm “Cosmic Flux”.

In Patch 9.2 of World of Warcraft, there are some major tasks ahead. Although Blizzard has done quite well this time to ensure that there are only a few “mandatory tasks,” a little effort is still necessary. Because if you want to keep your Legendary up to date, you have to collect a new resource.

What is the resource needed for? The “Cosmic Flux” is solely required for the creation and upgrade of legendary items. You need it when:

  • You want to upgrade any Legendary to Rank 7.
  • You want to craft a new Legendary directly at Rank 7.

Rank 7 corresponds to an item level of 291 in Patch 9.2 – the absolute maximum of the patch. No item can reach a higher level.

How to obtain Cosmic Flux? Unlike Soul Ash and Soul Cinders, you cannot exclusively get the Flux from Torghast – but you can if you want. The Flux is available from numerous different sources, so there is a way for most players to farm it conveniently.

In Torghast, it depends on the layer you are completing.

Torghast LayerCosmic Flux
Layer 1-12No Flux, only Soul Ash & Soul Cinders
Layer 1370 Cosmic Flux
Layer 1480 Cosmic Flux
Layer 1590 Cosmic Flux
Layer 16100 Cosmic Flux

Aside from Torghast, there are also numerous other sources for Cosmic Flux. These include:

SourceAmount of Cosmic Flux
Mythic+ Dungeons~100
One-time treasures in Zereth Mortis200
Weekly quest in Zereth Mortis400
Daily quests in Zereth Mortis75
Rare enemies in Zereth Mortis50-75
Daily treasures~10
Small treasures~10

The information currently still comes from the PTR. It would be possible that the exact numbers change upon release.

How much Flux is needed? You need exactly 2,000 Cosmic Flux to upgrade a legendary item from Rank 6 to Rank 7. The same amount is also needed if you want to create a new Legendary from Rank 1 – only the last step requires the 2,000 Flux.

Anyone who plays the new content somewhat actively will easily gather the necessary Flux in the first weeks to soon bring the first (and later the second) Legendary to Rank 7.

However, keep in mind that you still need Soul Ash and Soul Cinders for all previous ranks. The costs have not changed.

Do you think it’s good that the Flux comes from so many different sources? Or should Blizzard have solved this differently?

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

FIFA 22: Prime Gaming-Pack 5 is coming today – Here’s how to get free rewards

In FIFA 22 you can get free rewards again through Prime Gaming. We will show you how it works.

What are the rewards? In FIFA 22, you can claim a so-called “Prime Gaming Pack” every month. A similar feature was already available last year in FIFA 21.

When does the new pack come? Since February 21, 2022, there has been a new Prime Gaming Pack – the Prime Gaming Pack number 5.

As soon as you have claimed your pack, the contents should be credited to your account in the game. There may be some delays at times.

FIFA 22 Prime Gaming Pack 4
The Prime Gaming Pack 4 is announced for January 24, 2022

What is included in the Prime Gaming Pack? Every month there is a new pack, the contents of which may vary.

Typically, the bonuses include FUT items such as packs with gold players, player picks, loan players, cosmetics, and similar items. This should also be the case in January.

What do I need for this? To claim the Prime Gaming Packs, you need an Amazon Prime account and an EA account that you have linked together. If you are a member of both, you can grab the packs.

How to claim the Prime Gaming Pack in FIFA 22?

Here you can find the packs: First, you need to go to the loot section of Prime Gaming. This can be done, for example, via this link (via Prime Gaming / Amazon).

Now you will see the various packs displayed there. Click on the “November Pack” to secure the first set.

FIFA 22 Prime Gaming Packs
There will be new packs regularly

If you are not yet linked, you will now receive a prompt to connect your Prime account with EA. Just click the respective button to connect the accounts.

Then return to the page and claim your reward.

Where can I find the pack now? When you log in to FIFA 22 next time, you should receive a notification that your pack is now available. This works both on the console and in the web app. Now go to the “Shop” section and then to the section with “your packs”. There you will find the Prime Gaming Pack.

I can’t find a pack? Sometimes it may take a little while for the unlocking to occur – several players report this. Usually, simply waiting should suffice until the pack is available.

In FIFA 22, there are also other ways to grab free packs. The so-called “FGS Swap” is supposed to motivate you to watch FIFA on Twitch and offers packs in return.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Apex Legends has more players on Steam than ever before – That’s why it’s worth it

Apex Legends is more successful than ever on Steam. Since its launch on Valve’s platform, it has seen new records of players being set. With Season 12, the value has once again reached a new record of almost 400,000 players. But what do fans like so much about the fast-paced Battle Royale?

What are the current values of Apex on Steam? On February 19, 2022, Apex Legends reached a new record of 393,998 players on Steam (via SteamDB). That’s over 60,000 more players compared to the last record of 330,879 players from the launch of Season 9 of Apex Legends.

How many players are playing Apex Legends in total? Unfortunately, there are no reliable data on this, as only the numbers from Steam are publicly accessible. However, Apex Legends is also available on PC via EA’s Origin launcher, PlayStation, Xbox, and also the Switch. All these platforms are likely to provide strong player numbers as well.

From this, one can conclude that Apex Legends also in Season 12 and 3 years after launch likely has a very strong player base overall. And thanks to crossplay, full lobbies are still quickly forming across all platforms.

But what fascinates fans so much about Apex Legends?

Start video
Apex Legends: The skills of the new legend Mad Maggie – Drives opponents out of cover

These are the voices of the community: Here too, a look at the Steam reviews offers good insights. Overall, Apex Legends has “very positive” ratings on Steam. 86 percent of the currently 399,828 reviews are positive (as of 02/22/2022 via Steam).

Fans praise and highlight among other things:

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from Spotify that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the Spotify content

However, some players also criticize that Apex Legends, like many BR games, is not very beginner-friendly. But with Season 12, there fortunately is a new game mode called Control.

This comes with unlimited ammo and respawns and provides newcomers with valuable support to try out the game and gunplay of Apex Legends at their own pace.

Therefore, it still holds true: Listen to me! Now is the perfect time to finally start with Apex Legends.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. PCGamesN

Cheater desperate about the Anti-Cheat of CoD Warzone – “Enemies just disappear!”

The anti-cheat system “RICOCHET” of Call of Duty: Warzone has stepped up its game. Instead of just banning cheaters, the tricksters are now facing extreme disadvantages in matches. A clip shows how hard this hits some cheaters.

Cheaters had better times in Call of Duty: Warzone. For months, they dominated the battlefields of the free battle royale and felt like unloved kings.

But CoD stepped up in the fight for fairness, developed a new anti-cheat system, and celebrated initial successes in the weeks following its introduction.

Call of Duty currently identifies a rise in cheaters in Warzone, and to learn more about the cheats, the developers are now letting the tricksters play longer without banning them. However, not without extreme gameplay disadvantages that are driving some tricksters to despair.

Cheater gives up – “I’m uninstalling everything I have”

A celebrated example of a desperate cheater can currently be found on the discussion platform reddit.

The Redditor “Charlie_In_The_Bush” posted the video of a cheater. It shows a Warzone trickster demonstrating the new features of the anti-cheat and appearing quite desperate:

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the Reddit content

In the nearly one-minute video, the cheater can be seen landing with his parachute on an opponent to demonstrate what the anti-cheat system does to him.

He chases an enemy, fired a few bullets at the opponent, and … the enemy disappears.

“Look, he disappears! Right there! He disappears from my screen!” the cheater screams and doesn’t quite understand what’s happening to him.

CoD now not only ensures that cheaters cannot cause damage anymore. The game can also simply make enemies disappear for the tricksters now.

It seems as if the enemy player completely disappears for the cheater. Neither the activated wallhack nor the running enhanced reconnaissance drone shows the opponent to the trickster.

With a frustrated “Anti-cheat is real!” he ends the match and announces that he will uninstall everything. Whether the cheater only means his cheating software or the whole Warzone is not clear.

What do players say about it? In the thread to the clip on reddit, many commentators find the video very “satisfying”. There are some who thank for posting the video.

However, the mood is also partly tense. Many insult the cheater or cheaters in general.

The majority, however, remains schadenfreude. And it actually feels quite good to see the cheater’s house of cards collapse.

Feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts on the clip. If you prefer to read more current news about Warzone, check here: Godzilla and King Kong in CoD Warzone: Insider raises hope for completely crazy events

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Pokémon GO: New promo code gives you 31 items – does not work for everyone

On Pokémon GO, there is a new promo code on February 22. However, it does not work for all players. We will show you the code and the items here.

What kind of code is this? Promo codes for Pokémon GO are repeatedly published. You can redeem these codes either in the game or on a corresponding website to easily secure some gifts for yourself.

Today, on February 22, a new code appeared that is being shared in the community:

  • 7AZGHWU6DWV84

How long is the code valid? You can redeem it immediately, and you should do so as long as it lasts. Since it is unclear how long the code will remain valid, you should hurry.

What does the code bring? You will receive 30 Poké Balls and one Incense.

Code cannot be redeemed: Trainers in the community report that the code works fine for them and provides the 31 items. Other players report that they receive an error message and cannot redeem the code. Currently, it is unclear what the reason for this is.

All promo codes in February 2022 for Pokémon GO at a glance

How to redeem promo codes in Pokémon GO

How you redeem the codes depends on your smartphone. In Pokémon GO, the procedures differ slightly between iOS and Android. While on Android you can easily redeem codes in the game, on iOS you have to go through an external website.

On Android devices: If you are playing on an Android device, you can simply redeem promo codes in the in-game shop. You just have to scroll down until you find the “Promos” field. There, you enter the code, confirm, and then the items should go into your bag.

Promo Code

On iOS devices: On iOS devices, entering in the shop is not possible, as the corresponding field does not exist at all. Instead, you have to visit Niantic’s rewards website. You can find the link here: Redeem promo code (via rewards.nianticlabs.com).

Here you need to select your linked account and enter the code. If everything worked, you should see a corresponding notification on the website. In the game, you can check in the journal if the items have been credited to you through the code.

Anyone who wants to play the Johto Tour without a ticket can use these contents

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. reddit

In these 8 MMOs you can create your dream characters in the editor!

In online games and MMORPGs many players want to create characters as detailed as possible. We show you a number of games where you have particularly many options and customization possibilities in the character editor.

Pretty much every online role-playing game and many other MMOs let you create and customize your own character. The least you can expect in terms of customization options is usually a handful of hairstyles as well as hair, skin, and eye color.

However, some games go even further and offer an almost absurd number of options in their powerful character editors. This is especially optimal for players who want to engage in role-playing in MMOs and therefore want to create their own unique protagonist.

The following games have such detailed character editors and are just right for spending hours creating and customizing your hero.

[toc]

Note: The article was originally published in 2018. We revised it in February 2022 and removed the unfortunately dead MMORPG Astellia. Instead, we added the MMO-ARPG Lost Ark.

Blade & Soul

Here is what to expect in Blade & Soul: In NCSoft’s martial arts MMO Blade & Soul, you can expect a colorful anime aesthetic. So if you like anime and manga style, you will have a blast in the editor. Because Blade & Soul offers a lot of possibilities to design a character according to your wishes, especially if you like comically exaggerated proportions.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

The editor of Blade & Soul

Here is everything you can set: Those who create a hero in Blade & Soul will be overwhelmed by sliders! There is hardly a physical attribute that you cannot adjust with sliders. Even your feet can vary between petite little feet and huge clod-hoppers.

In addition, there are sliders for height, shoulder width, arm length, leg length, and for female heroes, the breasts. If you like, you can spend a lot of time in the editor until the character looks the way you want.

Start video
Everything you need to know about the MMORPG Blade & Soul – in 2 minutes

These are the highlights: The physical customization options in Blade & Soul are extensive, but there is also a lot of customization possible for the face. You can choose your hairstyle from a variety of hair styles. Here, crazy anime locks dominate.

There are also crazy skin colors. Even green goblins and red giants are possible. But particularly spectacular are the eyes of your heroes. You can also add special patterns to the iris in addition to crazy colors. So if you want cat eyes or strange swirls in the pupil, that is easily possible in Blade & Soul!

Aion

Here is what to expect in Aion: The online role-playing game Aion from NCSoft is somewhat older, but it still has one of the best character editors in the genre. In beautiful anime graphics, you can set a multitude of options and create your dream character.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from YouTube that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the YouTube content

The editor of Aion

Here is everything you can set: An interesting detail about the character editor of Aion is the hairstyles. Aion offered such a large selection that many other MMOs have since then dutifully copied the most popular hairstyles. Just pay attention, you will be surprised how many hairstyles in other games originally come from Aion!

You can then color the hair with a practical color palette as you like, giving your hero even more flair.

These are the highlights: Like Blade & Soul, Aion offers you an incredible array of sliders. With them, you can set everything: legs, arms, shoulders, breasts. Whatever you want! If you want to go totally overboard, you can also create ridiculously long stilts or small stumps that are almost as high as they are wide as heroes.

Aion may be somewhat outdated by now, but its character editor is still one of the best, if not the best in the MMORPG genre!

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

After 15 years with MMORPGs, Lost Ark feels like my first one

The new MMORPG Lost Ark brings a lot of innovation. So much that MeinMMO author Mark Sellner claims it feels like he is playing an MMORPG for the first time, even though that was actually over 15 years ago.

Hand on heart: How often have you started a completely new MMORPG and thought after just a few minutes or hours, “Somehow I have seen all of this before”? 

This isn’t your fault, but rather because many Western MMORPGs rely on similar patterns and schemes. This doesn’t have to be negative because, as someone who has played Guild Wars 2 for a long time, I only need a little time to wrap my head around Elder Scrolls Online, New World, and others.

This drastically lowers the barrier to trying out a new representative of the genre, and I have always seen this as something positive. MMORPGs can actually be quite complicated if you have never played one before.

Who is writing here? Mark Sellner is an MMORPG author at MeinMMO and has been in the genre for over 15 years. He has seen and played everything from Asia-grinders to “tiny” MORPGs. However, after several thousand hours in the genre, Lost Ark feels to him like something completely new.

You can easily get lost between Gearscore, crafting, dungeons, world bosses, completion tasks, and various classes. It’s good if you have 15 years of MMORPG experience and already know how many of these mechanics work, right?

However, Lost Ark taught me otherwise. Although I have definitely played more than 50 different MMORPGs over the years, the Korean isometric MMORPG feels like it’s the first one I have ever played. It even gives me things to do that I have never experienced before. And that is really good.

More on the topic
After 15 years I played my first MMORPG again and immediately regretted it
von Mark Sellner

Lost Ark might not reinvent many mechanics, but it applies them so differently that it still surprises me as an experienced MMO player. It feels as if I suddenly play an MMORPG for the first time or finally one that has been thought through.

In Lost Ark, I gradually loot better equipment and complete quests in a more or less open world, most of whose dialogues don’t need to interest me. But it’s precisely the tasks that I dwell on that make the game so good.

Too often, an NPC asks me something that I must answer correctly for the quest to proceed. These are not questions whose answers I already know, but often things taught to me in the context of this quest. If I wasn’t paying attention and don’t know the name of the very first Guardian, I’m out of luck with the questioner. 

Of course, I can just restart the dialogue, but there are also moments when Lost Ark actually punishes me for not reading the dialogues.

Recommended editorial content

At this point you will find external content from Spotify that complements the article.

I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy.
Link to the Spotify content
In this podcast, the MeinMMO team talks about how Lost Ark feels after 30, 60, and 120 hours

Look closely, you idiot!

If you don’t read carefully what you are supposed to do in Lost Ark and how the following mechanic works, you will stumble. This happens to varying degrees of severity, but it happens. A mechanic that makes sense, but one that I am rather unfamiliar with from MMORPGs. In several thousand hours of Guild Wars 2, I can barely remember a handful of tasks for which I really had to listen.

In contrast, Lost Ark gently teaches me through dialogues to look more closely. If I don’t learn this, I will suffer later. Already in the first area Rethramis, I need a 500-year-old wine to complete the adventure folio.

In a dungeon, I then find a 499-year-old wine that I can consume immediately. If I do that, I receive an achievement that tells me I am an idiot – that’s literally stated.

The item is gone and my folio remains incomplete. So I have to go back into the dungeon and fetch the bottle of wine. Upon closer reading, I notice the item description. “Only an idiot would drink this valuable bottle immediately.” It also says I should keep it in my inventory for 2 hours.

If I follow the description, after two hours the 499-year-old wine indeed turns into a 500-year-old wine, which I can then drink to unlock the entry in the folio. But I also learned much more about the game through that.

If you want the entry in the folio, you have to pay attention

From now on, I will scrutinize every item description of a rare item carefully because such mechanics caught me off guard quite often in over 200 hours. Sometimes I have to eat an ice cream within a minute, sometimes I’m not allowed to eat an egg in the first minute or after 3 minutes. The adventure folio constantly demands my attention in a way that MMORPGs rarely do.

This mechanic is pushed so far at times that it becomes uncomfortable. Its best and worst peak occurs on the continent of Arthetine. Here you are tasked with preparing the “Unknown Liquid XD-6353.” It consists of 6 different ingredients with very vague names.

The only challenge is figuring out which ingredients you need to buy. And that is much harder than you might think. While we need the item IX-ILIL121lIILI1, the game gives us 7 different items to choose from, which have almost identical names. If I buy the wrong one, I have successfully burned silver.

Buying the right one is easy, right?

Lost Ark demands my attention here in a strange way that makes me both happy and sad. Because, although I look back now and think this quest is a masterpiece by Smilegate, I was incredibly annoyed while having to do it.

I had a similar experience with the side story “The Secret of Your Majesty” in North Vern. If I don’t read correctly here that I just interacted with the wrong item, I feel like I run endlessly across the map. I was so annoyed by this that I immediately wrote a guide for it as soon as I finished so that no one else would have to suffer through it.

But even here, I think back: “Damn, that was really well done.”

Other game mechanics in Lost Ark continue this approach and think it through. I constantly feel that the developers have gone one step further than in other MMORPGs. You can notice this not only in strange tasks and cooking recipes.

A good example is the Screamer engraving, as I like to call it. An engraving that gives you a damage bonus if you spam a sentence with five exclamation marks in chat. An apparently absurd idea, but somehow genius. 

And then there’s a quest that causes an error message. That freaked me out at first, but then I realized that it was part of the quest and was intended. Lost Ark repeatedly breaks the fourth wall, known from films, with such inserts and addresses me as a player, not just my character.

This quest shocked me deeply

These are relatively few examples of a whole lot of exciting tasks and mechanics that are usually not common. Lost Ark feels thus like the next level of MMORPGs, the big level-up of the genre. But not quite like the very first. There are still more things that ensure this.

The trick about the setting is that Lost Ark has none

When you open Lost Ark, you might think the game has a slightly Asian-flavored medieval fantasy setting. Well, that is simply a lie. This assumption starts to crumble when you take a closer look at the classes.

Because in addition to the classic warrior, assassin, mage, and archer, you can also expect classes like the Artillerist. He shoots little atomic rockets with a big artillery gun. Or the pistol lancer, who wield a strange combination of spear and rifle with a shield.

That doesn’t really fit the medieval fantasy you expected, does it? It becomes clear again on the continent of Arthetine. Because while we visit a rather medieval Europe in Luterra and a feudal Japan in Anikka, the capital of Arthetine, Stern’s Origin, shines in finest steampunk style.

And so I find myself shortly after as a greatsword-wielding berserker on a hoverboard. Gliding over a gravitational wave on the way to my battle mech. While robots throw laser discs at me. I then jump into the combat robot and shoot the genetically modified enemies with two machine guns.

But just a few hours earlier, I had found myself as a shrunk Mokoko in a town built within a tree, riding ladybugs through a world where crows were the most dangerous enemies solely due to their sheer size. Shortly after, a setting awaited me in Shushire that had little in common with the playful Mokokos.

Lost Ark relies on a completely different setting for each continent and island. This feels fresh and allows the game to experiment a lot. The premise of the main story: “Help, demons are destroying our world” works excellently in every setting, and Lost Ark proves this constantly.

Another reason why Lost Ark feels like my first MMORPG is precisely this enormous variety. While I feel on Anikka or in Luterra that I have experienced these settings and things before, this completely disappears in other locations.

Particularly Arthetine, Tortoyk, or some of the small islands offer me things to discover, causing me to stop and marvel regularly because no MMORPG has offered me as much variety in its presentation as Lost Ark does. 

When I, as a seasoned hero, have to fight shrunk against a parrot with a pirate hat, it’s just genius. Or when later, I have to help a reporter exposing environmental pollution to save polar bears. Or that one time I was on the disco island and had to dance, or… you get the idea, there are many “or” in this listing. And so many more that can’t be included here.

Start video
Everything you need to know about Lost Ark’s endgame – in the video

This unique look and what I consider groundbreaking game mechanics make Lost Ark feel like my first MMORPG. And that is despite the fact that I have been actively playing MMORPGs for 15 years.

A LAN party made the experience perfect

When was the last time you had a truly genuine LAN party? One with real computers in a room, cramped together and without Wi-Fi or other substitutes? I thought the same thing and organized the “LostLAN” with my friends – because they were just as hyped about Lost Ark as I was.

This LAN was the best idea I had so far in 2022. Because sharing the joy of the game with a total of 7 other friends in the same house was a great feeling. 

Many more joined us later over Discord, and we spent the entire launch week just gaming together. And some moments of that week made this MMORPG feel really new again, like my first MMO.

On February 8, we set up a countdown until 6 PM, which we presented on a large screen. We counted down the last 10 seconds until the launch, just like on New Year’s Eve, and celebrated just like that. That was just one of many fun moments, and many more were to follow.

A real LAN party, how nice!

Especially when we were all around level 35 and unlocked the engravings. Lost Ark is by no means a game that explains itself. So we pondered together in the middle of the night about how this mechanic could work. When we finally figured it out, we praised ourselves and continued playing. At least until the next group thinking project came up.

This feeling of collective joy and the fun of exploring a new game from scratch and being able to share every little discovery with others felt exciting. After more than 15 years in this genre, it felt like my very first MMORPG, and that’s really nice.

What do you think of Lost Ark so far? Have you played the MMORPG just as intensely as I have and does it feel just as fresh to you? When was your last LAN party? Or have I just convinced you to finally throw another one? Please let us know in the comments here at MeinMMO.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.