We've all heard it right? WAAAGH and all that jazz. What does it really mean for you though? At Gen Con just last week I had a chance to talk to Bob Mull, the Community Relations Manager at Mythic, to find out what he had to say about the upcoming release of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (WAR).

My first question was about the 48 on 48 city instances, the capitol city Player versus Player (PvP) end game fights. It seems to me that this amount of people fighting at once isn't all that massive, and that creating multiple instances of that size could lead to frustration and anguish when a buddy in one instance wins and you, in another instance, lose. Bob was quick to point out that just like in real battles, the right flank can be attacked and fold, while the left flank moves in and destroys the enemy. Same battle, different viewpoint.

This differing viewpoint of the same battle makes sense, from a design stand point I guess. But I am skeptical that it will hold true in a game. Though I can fight for my realm, if I'm not in the winning instance, I do not get a bonus for fighting, just the regular PvP rewards and it's possible that my effort will not affect the outcome. That doesn't sound much fun to me. In fact, it sounds rather pointless. Why take part if you're not sure you're going to contribute to the right instance? Seven to ten instances per battle, at 48 people per instance, with only one winning the fight? I haven't had a chance yet to see how it actually works in game, but I'm leery. Whether the players will accept such a system will have to wait until launch, September 18th. If it doesn't work for players, what our options are remains to be seen.

We talked a bit about how WAR will look and feel like part of the Warhammer universe, most famous for their tabletop game, which is well and good for general Warhammer intellectual property fans. But my concern is that it can be as Warhammery as it wants, if it isn't a good MMO, then who cares? Bob feels that the team has succeeded in both, and that audiences will know that it’s a Warhammer look, while bringing a quality game to the table - one that players will enjoy for years to come.

With the years to come thought running through my head, we moved on to discuss Mythic’s stance on their original release into the MMO world, Dark Age of Camelot (DAoC). I wanted to know if DAoC players should be concerned that their server populations are dwindling and that so many resources are being thrown into WAR.

With the DAoC Origins server release being pushed back, and the launch of Mythic’s new game, should players just take their swords and go home? Bob gives an enthusiastic no. Mythic has little worry that DAoC will die any time soon.

The intensely loyal and passionate player community for the most prolific PvP MMO ever launched shouldn’t be concerned with being treated as second class citizens, or having their game, their online home, pulled out from under them. Bob says comparing the amount of assets between the two games is obviously not fair, but the Camelot folks have seen a lot of development time, and will continue to have its own dedicated team.

Mythic has not given up on their original foray into the MMO world. DAoC will last as long as the community for the game continues to monetarily support the company with enough subscriptions to keep it operating on a level acceptable to the Mythic powers that be. Isn’t that the same with any and all subscription services?

On to the one true power of WAR: PvP! Those of us who remember the promise of being able to level all the way through the game in DAoC and then found the actual process a far cry from truly possible (much less fun), Bob had some thoughts on what they were looking to accomplish in this area.

He said that if one were to incorporate RvR with other ways to gain currency, you wouldn’t lag far behind on the comparison of wealth, but one might find it a tad bit more difficult to keep up if you were only RVRing. One can make up for this difference by incorporating RvR quests into their daily killing routine, and he notes that if it appears that this isn't enough to compare well, they are always tweaking the system, even after launch, to ensure that the system works.

I admit, I am skeptical, simply because often times the RvR kills are fewer and farther between than regular questing can be. Add to this a disparate monetary reward, and one has only the recipe for disaster in a game that should always first and foremost be considered PvP centric. I should note here that he did mention that Senior Producer Jeff Hickman was the dev that drew the straw for leveling solely off of RvR. Next time I run into him, I'll have to ask how it's going!

We talked a bit about the Collectors Edition (CE) and how badly the whole situation seems to have gone. I would like to point out that thus far, no MMO company has been able to flawlessly deliver marketing claims of retailer cooperation, beta slots, and head starts. WAR is no different.

CE owners can't use exclusive character customization options in the head start offering due, he said, to key code issues and ensuring that those who create a character before their box has arrived have true and actual CE codes. He said it's never a good thing when your community is offered something and then finds out there are restrictions. Closed beta invitation fiasco for CE pre-orders anyone? Bueler? Yet the CE community finds itself with little recompense, and many questions as to how the situation arose.

Since players will be unable to recreate their characters after the head start using the exclusive customizations available, once the boxes arrive and codes are verified, it seems that this particular perk was unnecessary and overly confusing.

I also asked why we can't choose which retailer to pre-order from based on the visual look of special offerings (in this case, the arm bands), and then choose the bonuses once we roll our character. My Orc Choppa isn't gonna have any use for my spirit damage bonus from my Amazon pre-order. Of course, for those of us who ordered specially only to have our class removed completely (and with good cause), it's even worse. I don't see the harm in letting characters choose based on visual appeal. He agreed and directed me to marketing. Trust me; I'm hunting them down next!

On the same subject, when Best Buy and GameStop don't release codes in a timely manner (or at all, in some cases), it's Mythic's job and, more importantly, the community team’s job to respond to the issue and resolve it. Bob pointed out that the team is well aware of their responsibility, but sometimes, information doesn’t come as fast as players want. With the lack of official forums, he said it’s a struggle to balance which sites get information, via the team posting there, and that Mythic is aware that better co-ordination is needed. They plan to expand the Herald, to provide better coverage.

Part of the expansion of co-ordination comes with the Master Accounts that subscribers will be able to use to track multiple accounts across all of EA Mythic’s MMO offerings which at this time include Ultima Online, Dark Age of Camelot, and next month, Warhammer Online. Bob said part of the plan is to help tier multiple accounts across one login for a better look at how many accounts folks have, and keeping track of all the subscriptions at once.

He noted that regular leader boards, character look ups, real time tracking of realm status, guild searches and other options are nice, and will most likely be implemented, eventually.

We talked a bit about the other communities he’s responsible for, with the localization of Warhammer Online at launch in more than five languages simultaneously. Just before landing in Indianapolis for the Gen Con event, Bob was in Dublin meeting with Mythic’s European publisher – GOA. His goal for European players, one that many consider to be WAR’s biggest market, is to have the exact same support and community assistance that North American players will receive. While the European market had some issues with beta, he is working to ensure that the entire WAR player base is one community, with one level of service.

Finally, on to the big evil beast. Bob laughed as he stated they're all very aware that EA doesn't have a good reputation when it comes to MMOGs, and he wholeheartedly believes that they're doing better and that Mythic is truly helping that reputation. I'd have to agree with all of those statements, and there's really not much more to be said on the issue without flogging a horse which died many, many years ago.

I'd like to thank Bob for his time and the enthusiasm he shows for his communities across many games. I wish you and your team (hooray for James and Missy!) the best of luck with launch, and through what I hope will be many years of WAAAGH!

Becky "Tovin" Simpson
Allakhazam.com News Editor & Staff Writer
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