A Week with TERA: Day 4

Well, it's a disgusting 84 degrees out today, which wouldn't be bad on its own... but it's humid out, and Jon and I don't have a car to use today. Looks like we're going to be cooped up indoors until it gets close to the evening.
I guess that means more time to play and review TERA though.

I logged into Chumley, and hopped on my new, trusty horse. It was time to return to the quest NPC I neglected in favor of receiving my mount. I was welcomed to the city of Velika, and told to go see the inventory master and... drumroll please... LEARN HOW TO CRAFT! Finally!

Little dog in the big city!

Before I get into that though... the city is beautiful. I don't know if it's just me, but there is no lag at all. It doesn't appear that the graphics had to be toned down to account for massive amounts of players being in one area either. The visuals are stunning, and the architecture is glorious as well. (I highly recommend taking a few moments to look up and see the view if you ever get a chance.)

The city, however, is vast. If you actually are lagging, I could see how navigating Velika could quickly become a pain in the butt. Thankfully, it looks like the game's devs are one step ahead and placed a handy  Teleportal in the center. From there you can teleport to different sections of the city, cutting your walking time significantly.

After getting my inventory expanded from the inventory master, and learning how to craft, I found myself dirt poor. Crafting is extremely expensive for someone on their first character. Not only are you using the raw materials you find, but you also have to buy materials from the NPCs. All crafting plans also have to be purchased.

In the end I was only able to afford getting my Weaponsmithing up, and even then the best sword I could make was worse than what I'm currently toting.

Time to go meet with the next plot quest NPC...

This is what our future looks like if I continue to derp around the city instead of fighting.

I was happy to see another cutscene. I was basically commended on my valor and told that I could be the next Elleon if I continue my heroic exploits. The federation needs people like me in their war against the argon front, which I assume is name for the legion of monsters that hate us so much.

I then meet Samael, who is for lack of a better word, an ass. He says I'm cocky, a "glory hound", and I smell like pigling. (I guess he was right on the "hound" part. Ha. Ha ha.)

Looks like I'm being deployed to... LUMBERTOWN?

Some fey creatures are attacking villagers, and I need to stop them... what a job for someone who just took down a massive demonic force on the Island of Dawn.

I hopped a Pegasus, and flew along my merry way. Thank goodness I didn't spend all of my silver on crafting, because it cost me to take the flight.

Lumbertown, HERE WE COME!

The area, known as Arcadia, is gorgeously natural. Pine trees, cliffs, waterfalls, mountains... you almost would think that you aren't playing a fantasy game. Except that... you know... there are crazy races running about everywhere.

I was also very impressed by the level of detail in even the smallest of creatures.

Hey kitty, your cousin in World of Warcraft called, he wants more polygons...

There were rabbits, cats, chickens, rabbits, and sheep wandering around inside and outside of Lumbertown. The diversity is spectacular, and it's attention to detail like this that really makes a game come alive.

For goodness sake, not the bees again...

The quests started out pretty generic, but once I got to a pig ranch I got to do some fun things... Like mass-slaughter of faeries just so this adorable little popori could bathe in shiny faerie dust.

When a face like this tells you to kill, it's impossible to resist.

I also got to tranquilize pigs with darts and... bring home the bacon. -ba-dum-tsshh!-

That's all I really got to do today. I ended up taking a nap and then playing some TF2 with Jon.
Anyway, for the impressions...

Current Impressions

Graphics: My opinion is the same... amazing graphics, and sure to not disappoint.

Plot: The plot hasn't really progressed any since I arrived in Lumbertown. I guess later on I'll find out why the fae are turning against us, but the problem is I don't really care. This game has to try harder to gain my interest in terms of plotline.

Combat: Still fun, though I have to say, I'm finding it tougher to read monsters' movements. I'm starting to get the idea that some monsters weren't meant to be dodged. They hit for such a small amount, and there's never really an opening to attack in between dodges.

Questing: I'm kind of glad that I got to do a quest that had some humor mixed in. The little popori telling me to go kill faeries for dust and then using it to glow gave me a chuckle. It was also refreshing to tame the piglings rather than just killing things all of the time. Still not fully impressed though.

Crafting and Gathering: Crafting is a pain for a first-time character. I have no spare cash, so I can't even afford to make swords that are fit for my level. I guess I'll have better luck down the road, but for now I'm just going to keep gathering.

Tomorrow is another day...