Aion’s Going F2P in Europe Makes South Korean Player Restless

South Korean players seemed to be a quite surprised that the NO. 1 MMO in South Korea will go f2p in Europe. They argued that excellent games should adopt the p2p model instead of f2p model.

Aion Turns Free-to-play: What this Means for Players?

As we know two days ago, Gameforge Europe's provider of online games, and NCsoft announced that Aion will switch into free-to-play model in February 2012 in Europe. What this means for the existing and future players? Today, Gameforge revealed details about the account model for fantasy MMO Aion.

Mystic Column: LFG Healer, DPS…or a Mystic

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I love playing support classes or playing the “underdog.” In lineage 2, I have played all three Summoner classes, all three main healer classes, all the buffer classes, and the two support damage dealer/buffer classes. What is it about these archetypes that draw people to them? In the case of Lineage 2’s Bladedancer, would it be the attack speed bonuses the player gets, or maybe the awesome skill animation? What about my favorite, the less flashy Elemental Summoner? When looking at a game that has 8 classes to choose from, how do we, the player base, decide on what to play from these slim pickings?

Lately, TERA Fans has had an influx of “What class should I play?” topics being made. Of course most of the topic makers have what they liked to play in the last MMO they played, and with those likes came with dislikes. Most of the time it is hard to say just one or two classes, but sometimes three or even four may show up. What really gave me the idea to write this column was the post Auraline made asking “Where is the Mystic at right now?” In this topic, Auraline is asking about how balance and grouping is for high level Mystics in K-TERA.

After taking a look around both TERA Fans, and the official TERA forums, I came across a few topics asking the same questions or providing answer(s). After reading an interview from a level 50 Korean TERA player, It is clear parties can choose either Mystic or Priest. The player gives good insight on the Mystic heals, both targeted and orb, and how most Mystics play within a party. When a party chooses a Mystic, it is definitely not for it’s looks, but rather its mana orb. The player also goes on staying that the group has to have the competence to pick up the hp orb, but generally groups seem to pick up the orbs like kids picking up candy from a broken piñata. In short, there is no reason to have both Priest and a Mystic in a group.

With balancing, it can be a slippery slope for anyone. Some may see a skill nerf a blessing from the TERA gods, where others see it as a personal attack against them and their kind. In one patch note thread on the official TERA forum, one member feared that at higher levels the Mystic will become less desired in PvP groups, but another member suggested that maybe support will be a better option instead of damage dealing.

Unlike other classes, the Mystic is hard to follow. Is it a summoner, a healer, a buffer, a debuffer? Make up your mind! Have no fear though, there are some people who get the Mystic, and get it right. Another fansite posted a guide that goes into great details on what the mystic is, does, and how to play one effectively. Although, going back to the post made by Auraline, and the question asked. With a class like the Mystic, it is hard to say how any one way is right to play. I most likely will play heavily on healing and summons, with a side of AOE damage. The Mystic isn’t one to just roll over and become a foreboding tank, straight damage dealer, full on heals, or a flamboyant nuker. The Mystic was dubbed the “Jack-of-all-trades” and it is up to the players see that self-proclaimed title come through for itself, and be less of a burden for those who wish to play it, but do not understand the class or are overwhelmed by what it seems it can do.



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For the TERA Fans community, what kind of archetypes do you like to play? Do you think it is better for a game to have many classes, some of them being almost mirrored but just a little different, or have fewer classes to make it easier to pick from and possibly make it easier to pick a race?

Mystic Column: Player Interview

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Hello everyone! Today, we have our very first player based class interview for the Mystics.
Our interviewees are Willona, Cori, and Emposter!

Dukeun: Can you tell us a little bit why you chose the Mystic class as your main class?

Willona: Well I saw the Vampiric Circle skill and I was sold! What’s better than an attack that damages the enemy and heals you and your mates at the same time? I’ve always liked support classes, but I also wanted to do some damage. The mystic seems to have the best of both worlds.

Cori: I always played support classes even in the old day with DnD when we played it on paper. In my last few MMOs I had priests (or the equivalent of that) and when I saw the first korean videos I instantly fell in love with the class.

Emposter: I've always played hybrid/support classes in every MMO I've played. It's just my style.

Dukeun: What drew you in to choose the Mystic over the Priest or even the other classes in Tera?

Willona: Like I said, I love support classes. However I somehow always end up playing a magical damage dealing class in the end. I like to heal and help people out, but that’s just one of the many things I like to do. I also like to have some cool attacks up my sleeve. From the beginning I knew that the Mystic could be an awesome hybrid class. I thought that it had a lot of potential, but at the time a Mystic was viewed as a weaker version of the priest class. I just knew that the devs had more in store for this class, they just couldn’t leave the awesome concept that is the Mystic unfinished! Thankfully the devs saw this potential too! Even though we don’t have a lot of information about the summoning skills of the Mystic yet, I’m sure that They’re going to be great.

Cori: I was, or rather still am hoping it to be more versatile than the priest in terms of support classes. If it's fantasy then it's all about magic (for me atleast). Although I'm a guy I have to admit that the mystics skill with the butterflies is just gorgeous, it's a must have so to say :D

Emposter: The more I learned about and played the Mystic the more I liked it.

Dukeun: Did picking your race have to do with picking the Mystic class, or did the class pick your race?

Willona: Well I actually picked my class and race separate. Since there are no class restrictions, I just looked at the race I liked the most, which are the Castanics. Then I looked for a class and I really loved the Mystic. It was only later that I found out about the lore of the Castanics concerning the Mystic. So I guess I was lucky.

Cori: The first pictures I've seen of TERA showcased the races. Poporis. Who can resist not making a tanuki-like toon?! I sure can't. This had no relation to what class I chose afterwards.

Emposter: No. Both were decisions completely independent from each other. Should significant racial bonuses be added, this may change, but that hasn't happened yet.

Dukeun: After reading on the Mystic, how do you feel they will play solo and within a party?

Willona: I think that the Mystic will be good as a solo class because of the new summoning skill. The summon will be like an extra barrier between the Mystic and an enemy, which allows the Mystic to cast spells safely from a distance. The summon will also function as an extra player attacking the enemy. I think the Mystic has a very flexible position within a party. Since the Mystic is both a summoning and a healing class, it’ll be good as a second healer or damage dealer. The summoning skill will probably also allow the Mystic to tank a bit too. Basically I think the class will do good on both fronts.

Cori: As previously mentioned, I'm hoping to have a more versatile class that does well both in party and solo play. I think mystics will be a vital part of every party with their mana regenerating skills and buffs. For solo we still lack information regarding the summons.

Emposter: Mystics have a serious issue regarding their extremely short attack range for a ranged support class which, combined with all ranged class's inability to attack while moving, could pose issues, mainly for soloing due to difficulty kiting. In groups Mystics will face the classic dilemma which appears in pretty much every MMO to date, the difficulty in finding a role for a class which doesn't fit within the holy trinity of tank, healing, and dps. Bluehole will have to carefully balance Mystics so as to provide a clear benefit to having a mystic in your group rather than a third dps without angering the various dps classes by making them obsolete. Non-standard roles such as active mana regen through Essence Leach and the largely unknown benefit of Mystics new pets could provide an answer here.

Dukeun: Not to long ago, Bluehole and En Masse released a demo video on the new summon skills, how did you react to the new skills?

Willona: WHOOOOHOOOOO!!!!! That was my reaction XD. I was ecstatic. That was the best news I’ve heard about the Mystic up until now.

Cori: Was quite surprised to be honest.

Emposter: It's really hard to say at this point. Combat pets could help fix the solo ability of Mystics as well as improve group viability while remaining unique. However, we know virtually nothing about the pets other than the three types, meaning it's virtually impossible to say how they will really effect the class and whether they will change the role of Mystics.

Dukeun: How do you think the summons will play out?

Willona: I think the summons will be like a shield to the Mystic, protecting it from harm and dealing damage or healing the Mystic at the same time. I basically think that they will be your typical summons, but with a twist.

Cori: Having played Aion I was thinking Spiritmaster meets Chanter. We wannabe mystics are yet to see what they are capable of and what their roles will be in a party. They will be a nice asset none the less, can't wait to see them in action.

Emposter: Again, it's hard to say, really. I hope they become an integral part of the class, rather than ending up as a flavor spell that only gets used in emergencies. I would be completely comfortable with Mystics becoming a pet class as long as their role as buff/support did not suffer. I can see buff pets as a possible way for this to happen.

Dukeun: Finally, what kind of things do you look forward to for the Mystic class?

Willona: Being all over the place in group play. I really hope that the Mystic will be a very versatile class so that I can both deal damage and heal at the same time. I also like to see how the healing orbs will play out in battle. I think that quest guides may include a sections on where the most strategical places are to place these orbs. I would also really like to see how the summons turn out in the end.

Cori: Looking forward to see my Popori running around and swinging his rod spamming those butterflies.

Emposter: I really, REALLY want to see how the summons will actually work, what Mystic's end game spells will be, and how the mystic skill trees will affect our spells. And of course I can't wait to get back into the next test and play them again.

Priest Column: Painting the Group Green


I consider myself a dedicated healer. MMO after MMO, I'm drawn to the various support classes that keep behind enemy lines, buffing, debuffing, and quietly saving the day by keeping my group's health bars the satisfying color of life: green. While not partied, I make sure I gather and craft all kinds of gear that will help further my quest to turn everyone's health bar a beautiful shade of green. If I am to pass by a poorly clothed melee ally, struggling with a red health bar and too many monsters to handle, I quickly dart in to ensure their health bar fades to green.

So naturally, I want to turn all the health bars in Arborea green! And I will do it.

However, given the unique nature of TERA, us healers will have to go about getting the job done in a much different way than we've ever experienced. In a game with a non-targeting system, how will we keep our party's health bars as green as possible? Well, the answer, which I've been able to act out in three separate tests of the game, is a fun one.

TERA's priests are equipped with an arsenal of abilities unlike any other game's priest. Our two bread and butter heals, a HoT and a heal, require us to be standing very close to the player we're trying to heal. Both heals are AoE and take the form of a glowing circle in front of the priest. In order to be healed, players must be within that circle when the heal is cast. The radius of these healing circles varies from heal to heal, so we certainly will have a lot to consider when making a split second decision about which heal is appropriate for any given situation.

The nature of healing in TERA also mandates that we spend some amount of our time in melee range. Yes, clothed in robes and with only a staff to protect ourselves, priests in TERA will have to be running in and out of melee range in order to paint our groups green. But no worries; not too far along in your journey as a priest, you will acquire a group shield skill. How exciting! Or at least, I think it is!

As we reach higher levels, priests gain an actual targeted heal that must be aimed at an ally using the game's aiming reticle at a high MP cost. When we will absolutely need to use this skill, however, is only speculation for now as the North American tests so far have only allowed testers to reach a maximum level of 25. Given difficult, high level content with very angry monsters, there may definitely be times we will need to heal a specific party member as quickly as possible.

While some may consider priests to be too boring and traditional to enjoy, I can already see that TERA will break that mold. Priests will have to be incredibly active to be successful, paying attention not only to our beloved green bars, but also the monster's actions and our group's positioning. The unique situation healers will face in TERA will provide lots for me to gush about ;D

TERA-Online.com Turns One Year Old! + Video Editing Contest!

Today marks the one year anniversary of TERA-Online.com, TERA's official website! :D

To commemorate this event, you can go wish TERA-Online.com a happy birthday in this thread, or if you're feeling particularly creative, you can join the TERA birthday contest here!

You can check out both posts below, as well. Good look to those of you who enter the contest!

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One year ago, on September 16th, 2009, En Masse Entertainment launched TERA's online presence in the West with TERA-Online.com. Even in the first few weeks, the conversation on the forums was buzzing with excitement for the game. We held the game's first Focus Group Test in December and followed it with Focus Group Test 2 in April, both of which generated a bounty of valuable feedback which has already helped shape the development of TERA. Over the course of the year, En Masse Entertainment presented at Game Developers Conference, Electronic Entertainment Expo, San Diego Comic-Con, GamesCom, and Penny Arcade Expo, introducing TERA to a broad and international audience.

Today, September 16th, 2010, marks TERA-Online.com's first year online. The TERA community has grown exponentially, surpassing the milestones of 100,000 forum members and 200,000 posts in August and 10,000 threads this month. The new subforums introduced earlier this year are alive with discussion. We here at En Masse Entertainment wish to convey that this would not have been possible without you, our community. It is your passion that drives us to excel and make TERA the best MMO it can be. We read your suggestions, hear your feedback, and discuss your discussions--daily!

To celebrate TERA-Online.com's birthday and the TERA community, we're adding ten new avatars and kicking off a new contest!
-- Scapes


Video Editing Contest Announcement and Rules:

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They say it’s our birthday! Happy birthday to us!

We're going to have a kind of backwards-birthday—instead of asking for presents, we want to hand a few out. We've got some shirts and an awesome TERA hoodie left over from PAX and we thought: what better way to give out some swag than to have a contest?

Therefore, we're calling on all creative TERA community members to put your heads together and come up with your best TERA short film using your creative abilities and our b-roll footage from PAX. A detailed summary of the contest requirements are below.

If you don't have the budget for high-end editing software, the TERA team suggests a combination of Windows Movie Maker and/or an open-source program called VirtualDub.

The contest will be judged by Senior Community Manager Scapes, Community Director BroMags, and Creative Director Aaron LeMay. Entries will be graded for originality, humor/emotion, and storytelling.

One winner will receive a TERA hoodie, a TERA t-shirt and a TERA lanyard (with bells on!) Five runners-up will receive TERA t-shirts and TERA lanyards (with bells on!)

We look forward to seeing your videos!

- The Community Team -

Official Contest Rules:

1. Your video entry must be approximately 120 seconds long (and no more than 130 seconds).
2. Your video must contain only footage from the b-roll video (available in our online press kit at www.tera-online.com/pax2010) AND/OR still frames/slides with text you’ve provided. Scenes or footage can be re-used (i.e., you can use the same shot multiple times).
3. You are responsible for any copyright issues surrounding the use of music or sound effects in your video.
4. To enter the contest you must upload your video to YouTube.com and post a link to your video, along with your age and country of origin and your choice of theme (see #5 below), in this thread. Your video title and description must include the word "TERA."
5. The theme of the video should be one of the following:

--- a. The debut TERA music video
--- b. TERA as an Arthouse Film (or David Lynch's TERA)
--- c. TERA Noir
--- d. TERA: The Musical
--- e. The Gangs of TERA
--- f. A basic film genre of your choice, i.e., mystery, romantic comedy, horror (please identify in your post).

6. Dubbing in of speech and dialogue is encouraged.
7. The deadline for entry is October 16, 2010 at 12:01 AM Pacific Standard Time.

TERA Online – Closed Beta KEYS

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Tera Online E3 2010 – Gameplay Demo

5 minute loong gameplay footage from the E3 Tera Demo, enjoy and support the Tera online team by visiting their website at www.tera-online.com

Character Creation: FFXIV vs Aion

We've all been scouring pages of videos and reviews to find new details about FFXIV, but lets take a look at this new MMO in comparison to other current titles. Today we will be mainly focusing on Aion in particular, a comparison of the character creation system existent in both titles.

TERA’s Comic-Con 2010 Party

Hey, TERA Fans!

As you know, I was unable to attend Comic-Con 2010 this year, so I've been trying to find information on what the TERA party was like over there! So far, I've found one personal account of the party from user Silveredge on the official forums, in the party thread.

Silveredge seems to have had a fantastic time, as you can see here!

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The Devs really know how to organize an event. They know who their community is; first official event I've ever seen hosted at a full bar. The Gamers have grown up, the Polls about the age groups did not lie. On a side note this was the first gaming company I've seen that did not go light on the catering at their event, most don't even have catering. And by the way, no joke, drinks were on the House! The walls were awash in TERA, game content was playing on all of the screens.

They had the works: piles of hawaiian barbeque kebabs steaming in enclosed food warmers with great sauce, quality sliders, and they had some other wraps that you could make, I didn't try the wraps as I'm not really a big eater.

It's not every day you find yourself having shots with the PR guys and the Community Managers. I have to say the setting for this event was very different and quite frankly made me feel at home. It was like we were drinking beers and downing shots with friends, playing our favorite MMO. And thats what I look forward to.


Then he gets into the meat of the presentation. He seems to believe that some of the character models and maybe even the UI have recently been updated. I wonder if the client at Comic Con is different from the client that was used at E3 because I had not seen a change in the UI.

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They shared quite a bit of info on character creation, character customization, achievements, glyphs, and more. We also got to see the latest UI for the game. Hopefully they will post it up for you guys or share it with a site like terablah. I was concerned that the UI would feel detached from the game but it feels natural. It was reassuring when I saw that you could do what you wanted with the UI.

The most recently updated player models were a fair bit richer in detail than the models that are shown on the fan sites. The Human Males in particular look a lot better then I thought they did in the past. Which is a good thing for me, I had planned on playing one and still do. They could have been running it with higher specs then wherever the models on the fansites came from. But the graphics in action did not disappoint.

Very impressed with the effort put forward by the PR team and the Community Managers, Scapes is a great guy, glad I got to meet him and the rest of the guys. Even the CEO was present. The dedication and support shown by this company is very apparent. I didn't win a prize from the drawing but we all walked away with some Tera T-shirts and posters. Thanks guys.

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I expect we'll get some official coverage of the event from a community manager today or Monday! I'll repost it as soon as it's up, so keep an eye out.
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