Drakensang Online

[Greybeard]

My best character is now a Spellweaver, who uses magic to attack with. There are four character types - Ranger (bow), Dragonknight (sword/axe melee), Spellweaver, and Steam Mechanicus. The latter is dwarven and specialises in steam mechanics, can build a temporary fortified position on the field to support the character, and has access to various mechanical aids like a steamroller. This is the one character-type I have not tried.

Each new character you start up begins with being led through an introduction to the game, which is based on quests, and which takes your character to level 6. This is very useful. NPCs can be approached if an exclamation mark (!) shows above it's head. Once you solve a quest the NPC who gave it to you shows a question mark (?) above it's head. Sometimes this is when you have brought an item the NPC wanted you to get as your quest.

I would urge you to take all the quests you can. They are in a sense the key to playing effectively.

My Spellweaver has now reached level 28 and operates entirely out of the Resistance Command Centre. Resistance against what, you may ask? In the game at large the main enemy is the undead and there are necromancers who worship this god and have the power to summon undead to attack their enemies. You can actually watch this happen when one of the Nefertiti you are confronting does this.

The Resistance Command Centre has a second task to confront Pillaging Dragon Berserkers that have the power to breath fire as an attack (in addition to melee). My Spellweaver's main area of operation is on the Burning Coast, accessed directly from the Resistance Command Centre. I believe the pillaging dragon berserkers were responsible for turning the Burning Coast into a burning hell, littered with burning buildings, ruins and abandoned wagons, etc. But no doubt all will be made clear later in the game.

[Greybeard]

All my characters got stymied around the level of the mid-20s. So I started a new character, a female DragonKnight and she has now got to level 31, about half-way to 32. She is now based at a dwarven city, an urban area in a mine. The Dwarven mine is in a region where the Vikings are active. It is called Hodni's Mine.

It seems that I have now been closed off from the Drakensang website, so can no longer play. This can only mean that the game is now by subscription only, I think about 20 Swedish kronor each month. I filled in a questionnaire from the Drakensang team and the last question was how much I would be prepared to pay to continue playing. I left it blank which means zero.

I thoroughly enjoyed playing. I only discovered the website 6 months ago, though it has been in existence for the last 5 years. But being an old man there is no way I can keep up with the youngsters, so I retire from the game contented with what I have been able to achieve.

[Greybeard]

Drakensang online was an excellent free game, its fantasy places and inhabitants were what I would call Reality-Fantasy, apart from Dragons and Dwarves, and ghosts, there was little that departed from the kind of experience offered by Ultima Online. The graphics stood out as being in colour and were very impressive. Trolls were like giant monkeys and Troll Canyon, was very much like canyon country, deep gorges and ravines, often filled with mist. Very atmospheric. 

Over the years 200 kronor a month builds up to 2,300 kronor a year. 

The game also had its own currency, with which you could buy a mount for your character and even a range of familiars to choose between, to give your character a boost in power.

My preference was always for rangers and spellbinders for the range they gave. Made possible a fighting retreat, making stands at places that gave you a decent distance from which to hit the enemy while your ranger retreats in the face of great superiority.

[Greybeard]

I rejoined Drakensang online accepting the offer of a free trial of the software that usUally costs 9.99 euros for 30 days. You have the trial from your first login to the computer until you log out, but only for a few days, I have one or two log-ins left.

[Greybeard]

Post No. 10 in this sequence of posts shows the benefits of becoming a Premium subscriber (i.e. paying). It is this that costs 9.99 euros for 30 days, and for which I have accepted - without charge - to experience what a Premium Subscriber enjoys. I don't think I will subscribe permanently, but perhaps 30 days every month or two. Right now my Drakenknight is on level 32, so progress will slow down considerably from now on.

[GrimFinger]

What would you say that they would need to change or to improve about the game, in order to persuade you to become a regular subscriber, Jim?

[Greybeard]

Its difficult to say. There is too much grinding at the higher levels. The quality of quests have declined. I would like to see more quests that make the level of play more interesting. Quests have become a bit too much like grinding: but at higher levels! My trial period has ended and because of the fewer quests, I've decided to drop out of Drakensang, at least for a while.

[Greybeard]

I have been playing on  Drakensang Online for about 10 months, and have nearly 20 posts on this topic on playbymail.net. This is the latest.
My best character is now a Spellweaver, who uses magic to attack with. He is now on Level 28. There are four character types - Ranger (bow), Dragonknight (sword/axe melee),Spellweaver, and Steam Mechanicus. The latter is dwarven and specialises in steam mechanics, can build a temporary fortified position on the field to support the character, and has access to various mechanical aids like a steamroller. This is the one character-type I have not tried.

Each new character you start up begins with being led through an introduction to the game, which is based on quests, and which takes your character to level 6. This is very useful. NPCs can be approached if an exclamation mark (!) shows above it's head. Once you solve a quest the NPC who gave it to you shows a question mark (?) above it's head. Sometimes this is when you have brought an item the NPC wanted you to get as your quest.

I would urge anyone playing this to take all the quests you can. They are in a sense the key to playing effectively.

My Spellweaver has now reached level 28 and operates entirely out of the Resistance Command Centre. Resistance against what, you may ask? In the game at large the main enemy is the undead and there are necromancers who worship this god and have the power to summon undead to attack their enemies. You can actually watch this happen when one of the Nefertiti you are confronting does this.

The Resistance Command Centre has a second task to confront Pillaging Dragon Berserkers that have the power to breath fire as an attack (in addition to melee). My Spellweaver's main area of operation is on the Burning Coast, accessed directly from the Resistance Command Centre. I believe the pillaging dragon berserkers were responsible for turning the Burning Coast into a burning hell, littered with burning buildings, ruins and abandoned wagons, etc. But no doubt all will be made clear later in the game.

 My best character is now a Spellweaver, who uses magic to attack with. There are four character types - Ranger (bow), Dragonknight (sword/axe melee),Spellweaver (magic), and Steam Mechanicus. The latter is dwarven and specialises in steam mechanics, can build a temporary fortified position on the field to support the character, and has access to various mechanical aids like a steamroller. This is the one character-type I have not tried.

Each new character you start up begins with being led through an introduction to the game, which is based on quests, and which takes your character to level 6. This is very useful. NPCs can be approached if an exclamation mark (!) shows above it's head. Once you solve a quest the NPC who gave it to you shows a question mark (?) above it's head. Sometimes this is when you have brought an item the NPC wanted you to get as your quest.

I would urge you to take all the quests you can. They are in a sense the key to playing effectively.

My Spellweaver has now reached level 28 and operates entirely out of the Resistance Command Centre. Resistance against what, you may ask? In the game at large the main enemy is the undead and there are necromancers who worship this god and have the power to summon undead to attack their enemies. You can actually watch this happen when one of the Nefertiti you are confronting does this.

The Resistance Command Centre has a second task to confront Pillaging Dragon Berserkers that have the power to breath fire as an attack (in addition to melee). My Spellweaver's main area of operation is on the Burning Coast, accessed directly from the Resistance Command Centre. I believe the pillaging dragon berserkers were responsible for turning the Burning Coast into a burning hell, littered with burning buildings, ruins and abandoned wagons, etc. But no doubt all will be made clear later in the game.

Within the last few weeks I have continued to develop my Ranger, who was on Level 22. The next post will be about him, Oakhand.

[Greybeard]

Rangers have always been my favourite character-type. Stronger than any other and with his bow, plus the ability to make a fighting retreat, can inflict casualties on an advancing group of fighters, enough to force them to flee rather than continue the advance. But one of the problems with all the character-types is the dreaded "not enough" message. Not enough mana (for a spellweaver), and for a ranger "not enough concentration". I know that one of the reasons for this is using equipment that is too advanced for the character. But knowing what to do about is less clear. I tried equipping Oakhand with lower value equipment, but nothing helped. So I appealed to the forum, posting my question there. I had two useful replies. One was to equip my character with a longbow in place of a short bow. This proved to be as decisive as the first comment suggested. He was using a "legendary" short bow, the highest class of "quality". I was reluctant to do this, but waited a couple of days to see if there were any other replies. There was another reply which I quote below:

In addition to what UK said, you have a multitude of skills. Use them when you hunt.
Few hints:

Use death sweep against a group of creatures. Use the 2 skill trait on this skill to do 43% additional damage.

Use Adrenaline every time it is up to replenish your concentration. Use the 2 skill trait on it to make it reusable quickly.

Use the trait 2 and 3 on Hunting Arrow to remove the concentration that it uses, so you can use the concentration all for the precise shot.

Use Hunting Trap on groups of creatures to mark all of them at once and then shoot Scatter shot at them to kill them quickly.
Use trait 2 and 3 on scatter shot to recover concentration back.

Use Blade Dance and with skill trait 5 to reduce active cool downs on all skills when you target a group of creatures, specially now you can re-use Adrenaline again.

Use skill trait 2 on Deadly Blow to kill an almost dead creature to regain all your concentration.
Use skill trait 5 of Deadly Blow to heal.

Hope these tips will help you.
 

This was very helpful, despite not understanding some points. I am still not sure what the 2-skill trait refers to, but I get the gist of what he is saying. The longbow allows one to make several briefer shots that, while it is used, replenishes concentration.

It has made a huge difference to my character. He still has not enough concentration, but the use of special skills and a sequence of briefer shots with the longbow do make a significant difference. I have increased his concentration and my ranger now is soon to reach level 31 (in I guess about 2 hours of play).

This is a great game, the video quality graphics and the fact that it is free to play give it the edge over any other video quality game. that I know of. I have also learned ways to overcome loss of concentration thanks to the forum suggestions.

[Greybeard]

I thought I would let readers know of the sorts of services that exist in the larger urban areas where no fighting is allowed. These are the places to come to see what quests are on offer by the various NPCs that frequent the urban area. The biggest is Kingshill, but there are many more. The Resistance Command Centre is where my Ranger and other characters before him went to get quests. My Ranger, Oakhand has reached Level 32 and now operates in a viking area, out of Jarlshofen urban centre.  I have a second character, a Spellweaver (Mirageman, Level 38), still active who is in a Greek urban centre, Elonidis, but I play him only rarely since my Ranger got good advice, re longbows and this is my preferred character. I find that one character is enough, as a sort of main character.

Other services on offer in most urban areas are also important. An animal trainer, usually a giant of a human (look for the sign of a horseshoe on your local map), sells mounts. I make do with the cheapest sold for gold, a riding horse. But mounts come in all shapes and sizes! The most expensive are usually dragons.

There is also often a dwarf who offers storage of items that can be collected and left there, at no charge.

There is also a smithy, where character's armour can be mended for a few silver coins. I always go to the smithy as soon as I see the warning of damaged armour. I have found that if you delay more of your equipment is damaged and mending can cost more.

There are also NPCs who sell potions that heal, that give a boost of concentration (for Rangers), mana (for Spellbinders) or whatever your specific character type needs. The healing ones are the most common. 

There is also a Travel Post, to travel to areas that you can go to. The first time your character goes to an area he has to journey there by foot or mount first, to be subsequently able to go there by the Travel Post for a few silver coins.