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Spellweaving is Funcom's way of making caster combat more than simply spamming a spell.We're then shown spellweaving, AoC's combat hook for casters. The player uses the combo mechanic to increase his or her power over time, moving slowly from single target damage to cone damage to massive area of effect damage. But the trade off is that it drains stamina, health and renders the caster immobile. In fact, a caster can kill themselves if they're not careful.
It's also spectacular to look at - we saw a mage levitate as the power was building, his hands shaking with magic energy. Blue torsos surrounded him, Blair Witch-style crosses adding to the mix. Finally, stone blocks fall from the sky, slowly assembling to form representations of Gods. It's amazing to look at, but it's a blessing in disguise. Your fancy magic display will mark you as target number one in a PVP battle. This will result in friendly players forming a defensive perimeter around the spellweaver, protecting them from enemy damage. Keeping your spellweaver alive in PVP and PVE will be one of the most important things in an Age of Conan raid.
AdvertisementIf the combat has you intrigued then Age of Conan's guild city building should seal the deal. Guilds can claim a piece of land and build structures on it that will benefit the guild. To do this, players will need to gather resources RTS style. When cities are built the structures grow slowly from the ground up. You can, for example, build a level one (there are three tiers of city) guild keep and throw parties in it. You can erect city walls (for defence), barracks (for character upgrades), alchemist towers (where alchemists can gain access to special recipes) and plenty of other buildings too. Funcom likens the experience to being "one of those little guys from Age of Empires". We saw the mouse cursor being moved over a building, flashing it white. This means the building is both upgradeable and, perhaps more importantly, attackable.
We were then transported to the Aquilonian capital city, Tarantia, built by Conan's forefathers. It's from here that Conan rules after strangling the previous big cheese, which makes us think slightly less of the great man. At the beginning of the game Conan is a newlywed and there's a baby on the way. As the presentation took in the white stoned city streets we got a glimpse of the game's wall climbing mechanic. A red light shines from the top of a hard to reach tower. Intrigued, the rogue scales the wall using vines, Assassin's Creed style. What's the red light concealing? "What's there?" asks Erling. A small whimpering puppy, that's what. This is just one of many easter eggs for the player to discover in the game.
We can't wait to get washed up on the shores of Tortage when the game's released.Tarantia can support between 100 to 200 players at any one time, Funcom says. It will become a hub for player quests, will house an auction house and will play a heavy part in one of the game's central storylines. Jorgen lets us in on it. Tarantia's noble district has been invaded by raiders who came in the night on wooden carts. Conan's forces are holding them back, and you can help out. We're shown the battlefront - dead bodies lie strewn about. Birds are pecking on corpses. We see Conan's palace, revealed here for the first time. Inside the marble walls are nobles whining about the invasion. They are petitioning Conan to fight them off. We delve further and see ambassadors from the far reaches of Hyboria chatting. Several well known Conan characters stand in a circle, discussing the pressing matters of the age. But we're here to see the main man, King Conan. As we approach his chamber guards block our path. You didn't think you'd be able to just walk up to his room and open the door, did you? Jorgen smiles - players will need to prove themselves before gaining an audience with the King.
No problem. We skip forward and enter the chamber. We know what happens next but we don't want to spoil it for you. This is, after all, the climactic conclusion to the game's Destiny Quest, something players will have been working towards from the moment they wash up on the shores of Tortage. But what we will say is that Conan himself is nothing like we expected, which we'll admit was pretty much Arnie in a loincloth. Funcom doesn't care though, Age of Conan draws from the Howard books and nothing else.
Phew. If that's not enough to get you Conan fans hot under the collar we don't know what is. With our bums rock hard from dodgy cinema seats we leave for lunch. Check elsewhere on the site for our full report on what happened in the afternoon session.
Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures is due out on PC 23 May.
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