New character thoughts

I've kept putting off getting 'properly' into SotA, first because I was waiting for the quests to be finished and performance improved, then because I didn't want to set up my permanent characters until there were better customisation options... but I want to do more crafting in particular so decided it was time to at least bring Jonathen into Novia, starting on the path of courage.

I must have played about 10 hours before I got to the overland map, not because I ran into any problems but because there was so much content to explore before I was ready to leave Highvale Outskirts. Great that there was plenty to do so early on, although I did feel a little bit pulled in all directions and not sure what to focus on first. That's the strength and the weakness of open world/not being tied to a linear story I guess.

Lucky for me that we now have global banking! My bank account is mainly full of pledge rewards and add-ons, and my existing resource stash was halfway across the continent, so duplicate piles of mats would have been painful. And I had quite a variety of mats & loot from the Outskirts. Extra slots are now getting pretty expensive for me in IGG cost which makes me think more about what's worth keeping, also makes me think about grabbing a vacant lot again before too long.

I found the first couple of scenes almost too easy, never felt really at risk in combat, but maybe that's because I already know the basics. Quite a steep increase in difficulty once I hit some of the Estgard scenes but not so much as to be offputting, more like 'I can almost do this if I train some more and get better gear'.

The main courage quest has me really absorbed so far, I've just been to see Grannus and his attendants for the first time and at this point I don't know who to put my trust in, having heard so many conflicting opinions along the way. No spoilers in the comments please!

I've been a bit frustrated by NPCs who haven't been programmed with responses on topics I would expect them to know about, but not surprised considering how many distinct characters there are. Also slightly frustrated with NPCs who give different answers to maybe a couple of terms but stock responses to the rest, so I often feel I have to click through every keyword just in case there's something extra.

Worldbuilding: the investment of time and effort has paid massive dividends, running around Valhold I just had to marvel at how unique every part of the scenery looked. You might occasionally come across something like a barricaded doorway that you'd seen on a different house in another scene, but never do I feel like the environment has been thrown together from a limited set of standard assets.

Just a few impressions I felt like sharing, I'm loving the semi-new experience so far.

 

Welcome to Shroud, Jonathen !

 

If you don’t have a place to live yet (and more importantly, a place to store your stuff) there’s numerous places that offer rooms for free, however long you need, as well as places you can rent if you wish.

Glad you are having a good time! And with double xp the normal now, you will be getting a ton of xp from quests!

 

@Jaesun thanks, I do have a row deed and COTOs to buy a larger one if I feel like I need it, I just haven't bothered holding a lot while I was playing less seriously. Obviously for completely new players it's good to be aware they have options when the bank fills up!

And the double XP and daily XP bonuses have made training a lot easier than it used to be for sure!

 

The rent currently for a row lot is pretty damn cheep. You probably could pay an entire years worth, but yeah, if you weren’t playing at all, probably not worth setting a home and deed up.

 

Welcome @Vaentorian !!!