The same writer needs to try the open beta on the same rig and tell people the difference. Thats really the one bit of info Im missing.

Heck, anyone here who has both needs to do that.

One thing I have found that makes it a bit easier to deal with.
is binding auto run to a mouse button.
I can auto run, use my index finger to circle strafe and still have 3 fingers left for combos and attacks.

You will see a lot of people dogging on the circle strafe but as long as you keep up constant damage and combos while doing it, you are not the one being made fun of.

Well Tkyl you prob. are being made fun of but for other reasons.

Semi-decent, but not great. I have a Nostromo as well. I was able to change key bindings around to work with it, but I haven't found a setup yet that is better than using the straight keyboard. One really annoying thing is that you cannot bind a key to any of your "extra" hotkey bars. The two extra bars on the right cannot be bound, as well as the one on the bottom left.

I tried using the dpad on the Nostromo for the combat swings, and I found that I would consistently hit the wrong buttons. Maybe I just need practice with it, but it just didn't feel like it would work well.

They referenced the Keen and Graev's blog post/podcast and agreed with their dislike for the combat system.

I normallyl like K&G perspectives even when i dont agree them, but this time they sound like a bunch of cry babies. The combat isn't revolutionary and yes it is a lot of clicking, but you control how much and when and for me that makes all the difference.

In WoW i have literally been on the edge of REM sleep and have kept playing successfully based off sound queues that had been ingrained from repitition. I was bored to tears. One of the reasons i quit raiding.

When you hear the sounds of battle in AoC you perk up and you are instantly pulled into the game because you're required to react to your surroundings. Yeah you're clicking furiously away, but there's a method to the madness. You're using the same old MMO skill of timing that serves you in other games. Knowing what attack to use and when.

Drop the same combos to an alt bar on the side and use that for cool down notification.

The other option is to tear into the UI it will be customizable via XML files.

I think the impression that the combat is fun and unique but it is questioned whether it has any longevity is very spot on. Throw into the mix that the Assassin does a metric ton of white damage that I only use combos to try and get fatalities.

It is my experience that load times do get shorter the more you zone into them. However, I feel this has more to do with you wiping out the enemies in the area you zone into than any other explanation. Interior areas with enemies like Mithrelle's mansion are horrible choke points for lag. Once I cleared my way to Mithrelle, it was markedly better yet still choppy at alternate moments.

That being said, when load times are bad, they are horrendous. We are talking at least 40 seconds length.

I am also finding that the game is reasonably hard. The battles typically are in packs of three and many classes just can't handle those fights past level 6. The necro can barely handle 2 at a time from level 6 onward. And if you have mixed range and melee attackers for get it. You had best just concentrate on killing one so that when you die, you only have 1-2 left to kill. Their dots do a lot of damage but they take time to work. The volcano mission was very frustrating. I died half a dozen times. I understand balancing classes so that they can't handle three at a time. However, the solo destiny quests then shouldn't be populated so that fights come in groups of three. (or more)

I am going to rate the power of a few classes by how many times they died during the volcano mission. (level 9-10)

conqueror - 4
necro - 6+
tempest - 5-6

It might not seem like a lot of deaths but the mission is not that long. It basically amounts to dying every other fight. I can't see how that is fun in any situation.

edit: I am already gravitating towards the mage and priest classes

I think the main complaints like the quote above are from those that don't want a lot of game in their MMO. Maybe it's true. Maybe we've become so accustomed to auto attacks, mega-macros and super mods that we're adverse to any changes that make combat more challenging.

Or maybe it's because we spend so much goddamn time playing MMOs, the less buttons we have to press the better. If MMOs were playable in short bursts, I wonder if more complicated combat would greet a better reception. God knows I wouldn't want to farm a thing if each mob meant 20 button presses. Then again, at this point in my MMO career, I'd rather pound a nail into my penis then be subjected to grinding hundreds of hours for a couple pieces of gear or factional rep

I found the Assassin to be the easiest within the Volcano.

Don't forget my experiences are skewed because non of my characters have armor.

I found that (nighttime) vendor on the docks but it seems that most of the stuff offered is level 10 req.

Also, as noted, the conqueror was the easiest, yet I still died 4 times.

Haha, incredibly easy... Stealh FTW.

Actually, I had the same problem, Wired. I kept thinking that I might be able to augment my Bear Shaman's gear tonight but just couldn't find the blasted guy.

Yeah I know that but when I move to that stack of coins, there is no on there. I have checked all levels of structures above and below that spot with no luck.

Is he in the boat? In the docks? A bit more specific would be helpful.

Yeah I was on the docks at night.

That didnt sound right.

I haven't gotten a chance to do it yet (my new Conan rig is still in the works) but I'm thinking of binding my attacks all to my G5 mouse wheel.

Wheel Left=1, Wheel Click=2, Wheel Right=3, Wheel Up=Q, Wheel Down=E

Just a thought. I'll let you know how well it works once I get my rig up an running (hopefully tonight).

I wish that was the case, because it would be an easy solve, poly, but I saw the pirates and red hand guys walking around, just not the danged merchant.

Come to think of it, I've noticed that there are differences in Nighttime Tortage between the three character classes... could merchant placement actually be one of them?