Just checking in with the latest information from the public test server (PTS). Remember that if you need to download the PTS installation, you can check the official post on the subject and if you’re having problems, please feel free to post about them on the official forums or our very own Test Server Board. There’s also a how to thread for setting up your own installation.
I would much appreciate it if somebody from the European test server could let us know how things are going. Who is responsible for which server firsts, what top legions are becoming established, and does /3 actually have any good conversation on it?
I’m on the NA PTS and today the server achieved its first level 50 characters. Grats to Intricate of No Life Brigade on the Asmodian side who appears to have been the first of several 50s. The race to 55 is still not complete and we wish all the contestants good luck. The Abyss was just beginning to become active today with several artifacts being taken by No Life Brigade (Asmodian side), Focus (Asmodian side) and Vaizel FTW (Elyos). I wonder what server those Elyos came from… I’m looking forward to some good fights in the future as the competition shapes up.
Personally, I’ve managed to level at a pretty leisurely pace as you can no doubt tell since I’m sitting here writing this rather than leveling. The new gliding mechanic with a speed up when you hit the “w” key is very nicely done. I’ve now bought my first pet and taken the liberty of naming it after one of our administrators as is fashionable these days.
I’ve been in both of the solo instances available. Basically, for Haramel I barely managed to run two instances (had a bar left until 23 when I came out the first time). There’s a very distinct difference between my first entrance and my exit. One could say that I came, I flew, and I shoveled my way out. Lower level characters are going to love this instance. 
The Nightmare instance has a lot of potential for those who like to try doing instances with different skill sets. You do indeed become Kromede in Nightmare, you obtain 3 special skills for use only in that instance (the Rotan, an aoe spell, and a healing spell on a long cool down). These spells allow you to play differently than your character might normally play. It’s just a lot of fun. I really think it’s a well needed addition for level 37-44 characters.
Here are a few screenshots from the instance that I took, including one from the library of what appears to be backwards text. I feel that I should be studying this for a potential subliminal message, although I’m feeling a little tired right now. For those of you that have been going crazy over Kromede, I snapped a special screenshot just for you below.
Additionally, on the NA PTS we obtained 1000 tokens from a survey that can be used to trade for temporary gear. I’ve used around 400 of mine for the Epic (and very pretty!) wings that I’ll probably never bother to obtain on the real servers since I have access to the 6 month wings. Many others have bought their own kitteh with around 100 of their tokens.
So far my experience on this PTS is going much better than my last experience. The xp gain is much higher than the last time the PTS was up and it seems like everything is going smoothly as far as the server performance goes. There are some current problems that I hope the community will bring to the attention of NCWest on their official forums (NA PTS forum or EU English PTS forum), especially with the user interface (some quests still in Korean, incorrectly sized windows, etc.). There have been some complaints of crashes as well, although I haven’t yet been affected. All-in-all the PTS has been fairly fun and hopefully everybody will continue to enjoy their time on the PTS.
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