Van Cleef

[--Pete]

Hi,

I would have throught that instanced would be a "one time" thing. That is, no respawns and you go through it once.

There has been a lot of discussion about this on the beta fora. One of the problems people keep having is getting pretty far into an instance, then losing a lot of their party who cannot rejoin because the mobs in the regions that were cleared are now respawned. It does seem to make more sense to work instances more along the D2 line -- once an area is cleared, it stays cleared (at least for the session). I don't recall any Blizzard employee addressing this issue. They might just be in favor of it because it makes the instances "harder" to do and soaks up more time. But that's just a guess.

--Pete

[DeeBye]

I'm a possibilty for this endeavour. I'm currently lvl 19 and should probably be higher than that on Friday.

I do have some stuff planned early the next day (namely, vacation time at the ol' cottage), so I don't know how long I can stay up. I'll try to make it, but don't count on me.

[Ruvanal]

Pete,

I saw a reference one time that the instances worked like that (no respawns) the first time they activated them the alpha. It was set to its current status of respawning the general mobs (not the named ones) to try to prevent solo characters from just slowly grinding the whole instance to an empty state even if it took dozens or hundreds of deaths.

From what I have heard in terms of complaints about some of the end points (named bosses) in the instances; I was under the impression that they did not respawn as the general mobs do. This may have changed with phase 3, but I do not recall hearing anything about a change like that. Besides if the named bosses kept respawning every 15 minutes, would not the Scarlet Monastary have been mined for items even worse that was last push? Any pair of mages that went down to whoever was the favored one to knock off would have only needed to keep hanging around to pick up two or three kills to max out most of the variety of items that potentionaly would drop.

[Tal]

Y'know...I'm pretty sure you're right that they don't respawn not that I've done some looking around on the 'net. Sorry about the information lapse.

[Bolty]

The second group waits until he respawns then tags him so that the first group can help out. :) The good thing about it is that the second group can concentrate on the summoned help while the first group takes out Van Cleef then the two groups switch roles for the second round with VC. :)

True, Tal, but I don't think it would be necessary. For any boss mobs that drop quest items, we can simply re-organize our groups into Group A That Hasn't Done the Quest Yet, and Group B That Already Has. Since some of the chars going down this trip have already killed Van Cleef, they would form Group B for the big fight. Same thing for Shredder.

-Bolty

[Bolty]

They might just be in favor of it because it makes the instances "harder" to do and soaks up more time.  But that's just a guess.

Actually, the main reason instances do have respawns of general monsters is that this actually institutes a TRUE death penalty. If mobs never respawned, dying would be no big deal since you could just run back to your body (long trip, but still). Since you get your body back at the start of an instance when you're doing a corpse run, this is now prevented.

It's a good thing. It adds a tremendous amount of tension in the gameplay when you get toward the end of an instance - because if your party is wiped out, those hours spent are lost! Insert quarter and try again, tough luck. It's the closest you can come to "hardcore" in this game.

-Bolty

[MongoJerry]

It's a good thing.  It adds a tremendous amount of tension in the gameplay when you get toward the end of an instance - because if your party is wiped out, those hours spent are lost!  Insert quarter and try again, tough luck.  It's the closest you can come to "hardcore" in this game.

I agree completely. It also makes characters with the ability to resurrect members of their party that much more important. If all of the mobs stayed dead, then the resurrection spells and abilities would only be a minor convenience rather than something vitally important.

Incidentally, the rules on what mobs respawn are different from instance to instance. Named mobs never respawn in any instance. In some instances, it seems that all normal mobs do respawn. In others, only patrolers respawn, while mobs with fixed locations do not. In some areas, like the Van Cleef instance, the rules change depending on what part of the instance you're in. So the rules are a little complex at the moment. However, I agree with Bolty, that I like the idea of normal mob respawns in instances.

[--Pete]

Hi,

Actually, the main reason instances do have respawns of general monsters is that this actually institutes a TRUE death penalty. If mobs never respawned, dying would be no big deal since you could just run back to your body (long trip, but still). Since you get your body back at the start of an instance when you're doing a corpse run, this is now prevented.

OK, that makes sense and is a good idea.

So, Tal's idea to wait for Van Cleef to respawn for the second group would *not* work, right? Until the "super group" capability is put in, any number of people can get into an instance, but only 5 max can get the named boss. Is that the way it is working right now?

--Pete

[Ruvanal]

That [retty much is the way it would work now. This also means that with more players, it can be easier to tolerate many of them being at the lower levels that Bolty first listed without having to be as concerned about having a group of 3 or 4 mobs getting activated.

[Bolty]

This also means that with more players, it can be easier to tolerate many of them being at the lower levels that Bolty first listed without having to be as concerned about having a group of 3 or 4 mobs getting activated.

But if there are more than 5 players who need Van Cleef's quest, someone's going to get screwed out of it.

-Bolty

[MongoJerry]

This all depends on how many people are in and show up. We can decide then what we do. In my case, Alcestis will probably never make an appearance after this showdown, so she could easily be in the B group who does not get the quest. Or, if we really have a big gathering, we could run the instance twice. Somehow, I doubt that's going to be the case, though. Let's see who shows and then figure this out. The bottom is: Everyone's welcome who has a character of a reasonable level for the instance.

[Crusader]

Of course, I made it to level 27 today, ruling me out. Alas, there goes my chance of staying up till 5 am helping you guys! shame on you! <_< ;)

[DeeBye]

First screenshot from the adventure.

http://s88432259.onlinehome.us/images/WoW/...0204_231615.jpg

I would have stayed longer (we were really kicking ass) but I needed to get packed and ready for my holiday.

I am eagerly awaiting the reports of the endeavour (even though I won't be able to read them for a week).

[Bolty]

Cleef 6, Bolty 0!

By far the easiest and fastest Van Cleef run I've ever been in, our intrepid party of 8 slaughtered everything in its path until a server crash took us all out past the Goblin Foundry. CleoBoltra has now retired the Van Cleef quest and will not be attempting it again. Until next time...I hear Bolty the mage has a score to settle with the man.

-Bolty

[Jarulf]

Next time, perhaps it could start earlier (or later) so that it doesn't end up at 4-6 am CET. :) That way I could perhaps join too.

[LavCat]

I am up for it again! And when I turned in all my quest rewards I got enough experience to level. I am still gaining at least one level a night, but I'm not sure how long that can continue. At some point soon I have at least a hundred DII accounts that need refreshing.

[MongoJerry]

At some point soon I have at least a hundred DII accounts that need refreshing.

Or, you can do what I did when my D2 accounts were expiring, and I planned to refresh them. I asked myself simply, "Why?" No answer came, and so they were allowed to expire. I was amazed how freeing that was.

[JustAGuy]

I've refreshed my accounts once already and I don't want to do it again... What would be really nice is some sort of utility to take those D2 characters from the realm to single player. Of course, it's a one-way transaction; basically just for archiving all the characters I've made.

As for Van Cleef, that was pretty fun. Too bad it crapped out on us as we were about to smash him into bits.

And to Bolty: sorry for tagging those guys when I wasn't supposed to. Crusader Strike is instant cast and I'm a bit quick on the trigger...

Undead Tracking was incredibly useful in that one part of the Deadmines. If we were in one group, it would be much easier to point the undeads out to the rest of the party by using the little way point indicator, when you click on the minimap. I would have been doing that, except we had two parties, and at the end, it was the second party that needed the kills.

[LavCat]

WANTED: a group to kill that son of a .... Edward Van Cleef.&nbsp; This jerk has eluded me 5 times and I've had enough of his smirking attitude.&nbsp; After my last attempt escorting a group comprised of a level 14, 16, 17, and 23 and actually making it all the way down to Van Cleef's First Mate, I am sick and tired of this quest kicking my butt!&nbsp; (Yes, as a Priest, I kept a level 14 alive down there).

This Friday, 10:30 PM Eastern time.&nbsp; Be there with bells on.&nbsp; Here's the info:

Meeting place: Sentinel Hill, Westfall
Character levels: 20-24 preferred.&nbsp; 18-26 acceptable.&nbsp; If you are younger than 18, you'll be a drain on the party, and if you're above 26, you'll make it too easy (thus ruining the challenge and joy of finally beating this brutally tough quest).
Time required: leave yourself 3 to 3.5 hours, just in case, although with a strong group it will not take this long.
What to bring: if we have no Warlocks in the party, ask any Warlocks you might know to make you a Soulstone before heading down.&nbsp; It might just save the whole group.
Quests to get: there are 4 quests that can be solved in the Deadmines.&nbsp; Two you can find from a dwarf in the tavern of the Dwarven District in Stormwind.&nbsp; 1 you get from Shoni the Shilent in the same area.&nbsp; Finally, you get the quest to kill Van Cleef himself by completing a chain of quests for the Defias Brotherhood in Westfall.&nbsp; It is recommended that you pick up these quests before you begin, if you haven't already.
What to know: group mechanics, and how your class fits into a group.&nbsp; Instances require good group players to win - prima donnas will get everyone killed.

Be there!&nbsp; If we can't get enough people for this time, would Saturday night be preferred?&nbsp; Please post here if you will participate, along with your character name, class, and level.

Attending: CleoBoltra, currently level 23 Priest, and REALLY mad at Eddie.

-Bolty
[right][snapback]50063[/snapback][/right]

Some of us were talking tonight about a confrontation on Stormrage at about 8:00-8:30 pm server time today, 12/1/2004 (I use US date format because Europeans don't get to play)! I may or may not make it myself, but I hope to be there and I thought notice should be given.

I suspect we may be making runs over the next few days, as necessary. Something must be done about Van Cleef.

[Occhidiangela]

Some of us were talking tonight about a confrontation on Stormrage at about 8:00-8:30 pm server time today, 12/1/2004 (I use US date format because Europeans don't get to play)!&nbsp; I may or may not make it myself, but I hope to be there and I thought notice should be given.

I suspect we may be making runs over the next few days, as necessary.&nbsp; Something must be done about Van Cleef.
[right][snapback]61648[/snapback][/right]

I would ask all concerned to forgive me not having been in the Beta, or even in the country, when this all went down in June. My character is named

LeeVanCleef, and I promise you, HE IS NOT RELATED TO THIS NASTY VAN CLEEF person. Heck, I did not even know it existed when I chose the name.

Lee Van Cleef/Angeleyes is where Occhidiangela comes from, so how could I not name a character LeeVanCleef? Particularly a rogue/assassin sort.

Simple. So, I am glad we are not on a PvP server, or you folks might feel a need on Stormrage to take me out, just to make sure none of the Van Cleef family survives the Great Cleansing.

When I get to a high enough level, I will be asking for friends to join me in trimming what is apparently a blighted branch of my family tree.

Occhi