More than likely, this was a bug or mechanics abuse that people were... well... abusing, so it got shut down. It was probably never meant to be that way, so the problem was corrected. Either way, riding the skirr to Ratha takes about 18 minutes or less once the boat launches. I don't consider that to be a long time at all, especially when I was able to train a half dozen skills to 34/34 during the trip. I made the trip from Aesry to Ratha, to Crossing, circled 15 times, spent 2,253 tdp's and barely made it back to the skirr in time for the return trip. All in all, I was gone from Aesry for 2 hours? People complain if they can't get a moongate and get it now. I don't understand it at all.

Elvis has left the building.

Yeah.. the trip to Ratha doesnt take long.. but waiting on the boat to get there to take you... then waiting on the mammoth.. then riding the mammoth... then riding the mammoth to leave when you have had your fun - because its not like Fang cove is the social scene of the realms - and then riding the skirr back to crossing.. which is really only half the trip since I dont stay in crossing much anyway.

How long would your "two hour tour" have taken you if you had missed the skirr back?

>I feel, honestly, if you are paying more for the game via having a premium account, you have the right to some travel "perks" that you don't get with a basic account.

You already get those perks. If you don't feel that they justify paying for premium, then don't. Not really the thread to debate this topic, and it's not REMOTELY the thread to fight policy change. It was always the policy that doing item handoffs in any fast travel location was mechanics abuse. Droughtmans arena, wedding portals, meeting portals, fang cove, etc. Premium people get rings, and only premium people get FC period.

>Additionally, it will be a shame to see such a promising area go unutilized because people can't access it.

I grudgingly agree with this; the reason some of the more remote locations have populations is because that's where current creature design policy forces them. They all want to be closer to the core areas, Shard/Crossing/Theren.

My point about travel design was thus: it doesn't add any sense of true remoteness, since we all talk on the boards/IMs/whatever anyway. All it does is add another fairly useless layer of tedium to the game. I'd be thrilled to pay some schmuck NPC 10 plats for an instant-leave boat ride that took 30 minutes like the normal Skirr, or pay him 50 for a moongate, or similar. Tied in to the 'theres nothing to spend money on' thread, it would be sincerely honest to see player conveniences like this payable with IG coin and not RL cash.

additionally, for those who are guilded thieves and pop boxes, although fang cove has box-dropping critters, there are no "urban" areas in FC. hence you have to go thru a portal to pop, to be able to use urban bonus to its full capacity.

/---
Oh and last one, DR at any given time has a population of weenies that will criticize at the drop of a hat, don't take things personally it happens to everyone.
Leucius

Noticed there was an event in Fang Cove and tried to go there... and was surprised to discover the portals were completely gone. When did this happen and where was the decision announced? The last time I was able to attend an Estate Holder meeting the GM running the event didn't have time to distribute/ fix the new rings. I will never go to Fang Cove if I have to travel through Ratha. I make every effort to stay on the mainland so I can actually interact with other players.

Please fix soon.

With Love,
Caiomhe

This isn't a new policy. We periodically ease up on enforcing it to test the waters from time to time, and every time thus far it's proven again that folks won't abide by the established rules. NEWS 2 4 has been around since 2005, at least. It applied to the Seacaves at the time, which had no other means of access. Fang Cove has multiple methods of being reached, and we can evaluate the addition of more in time.

We've said before that we're working to get unlocked rings more readily available. The mentality that some people have towards Fang Cove needs to change. It is not "the Seacaves 2.0". It is not an isolated area with no other access but magical portals. It is a town like Crossing, Riverhaven or Shard. It is a town that you are (admittedly slowly) seeing built from the ground up.

On the IC front, there are negotiations with provincial leaders and administrators that need to take place to have it recognized, to have a justice system for protection, to have basic facilities and services established, to get a steady flow of trading to the area. On the OOC front -- it takes time to build and code this stuff, especially when there are tons of other projects going on. FC has projects in the works, some of which will help address the travel concerns here. Until that point, though, we're not going to leave the portals to be abused.

You STILL have more access to Fang Cove than there ever was to the Seacaves, and people survived that just fine. We'll get through this, too.

SGM Zadraes
Logistics Lead
Premium Lead
Trader Guild Advocate

>I'd assume so, but are we still allowed to use our rings to run to the Cove for a healing? Or just LTB and shopping?

Use of the rings is fine. They have timers and cooldowns that limit their use. The portals did not have that.

SGM Zadraes
Logistics Lead
Premium Lead
Trader Guild Advocate

Can just the people who are abusing game mechanics be punished?

There has to be a way to track items moved from person to person specific to location.
Just bust anyone who moves items or coins or whatever the abuse is.

I do not go to Ratha, since it opened I have likely been less than 10 times nor will my rate of visits to the islands increase, I don't like them or the trying to catch the boat at the right time both ways thing since many times I only have a limited time to play.

So, unfortunately, even though I very much enjoyed and was amused at working skinning and hiding and other stuff I am back training in quartz gargs, I guess now I am stuck to going back to leucs or regular gargs for that. Only visiting Fang Cove if I can make a monthly meeting. (well I did also spend a lot of time there to hit the rotating merchant, to update Elanthipedia, but I guess I cannot even do that now either as much as I was.)


If someone can repost (post) the link that was given out two times ago when estate holder rings were charged/attuned, that detailed how they worked, limits, etc, that would be spiffy. Maybe the rings aren't once a week like I think I remember, or maybe they don't not teleport you out again after like 30 minutes, then I guess I could go there to still hunt or catalog items.

I hate rules that punish everyone, even people not doing bad stuff. Find a way to just cut off the heads of the bad people.

Linett

>If someone can repost (post) the link that was given out two times ago when estate holder rings were charged/attuned, that detailed how they worked, limits, etc, that would be spiffy.

http://elanthipedia.org/w/index.php/Post:Premium_Item_Upgrade_-_Estate_Holder_Rings_-_02/15/2012_-_22:20

Yes, there's a timer. Yes, there's a 30 minute limit, although it doesn't automatically ship you out after the 30. You do have the option of using it as a one-way transport and taking more mundane transportation back out.


And not in response to the above but more of a general response, while I understand some of the frustration, I'm confused by the outcry about this 'sudden' change. This is not sudden and we were warned months ago that the the portals were -not- intended to stay open 24/7:

http://forums.play.net/forums/DragonRealms/Estate%20Holders%20of%20Elanthia/Game%20Master%20and%20Official%20Announcements/view/434

So yeah, it's not the way you might want to see it, but it's exactly how they intended it to be. No surprises here.

~Katt

---

A gestalt draugen swipes a hooked leonine claw at Silus. The claw lands a solid hit that cuts deeply into his groin!