If I Could Save Wine in a Bottle

. . . the first thing I wouldn't do is leave it in the middle of a haunted ruin, surrounded by brain-gnawing zombies.

But that's just me.

Age of Nanoc continues to surprise and delight. I had a quest the other night to fetch some exotic wine abandoned by an adventurer in a haunted mausoleum. After dispatching some roaming undead, I circled around looking for an entrance to where I knew the wine resided. I found no egress. I did, however, spy a wall that looked more weakened then its surroundings. I took a whack at it and a damage bar popped up. Several blows later the wall fell, some undead beasties fell upon me (which I efficiently slew), and I obtained the wine.

Another quest tasked me with obtaining three eagle feathers. Wandering around White Sands Island, I noticed a massive vine growing along a tall, imposing cliff. I approached it and got a message indicating I could attempt climbing. Like a chattering monkey, I scaled the beanstalk. At the top, oodles of eagle feathers for the picking. And thankfully, no giant bird guarding them. I gathered the three prettiest feathers and chattered back down the vine.

Now, Everquest II first allowed players to break down walls and scale daunting heights. So AoC isn’t doing anything new here. But I do give them props for incorporating those two features into quest scripts that go a bit beyond the typical kill eight mobs or collect fifty crocodile skins.