As I stare at the calendar I am shocked to see that there are only 7 more days before the barrage of open beta invites begin to go out and the Age of Conan worlds get much much busier.

Is the game ready? Will we have everything promised or will Funcom make the same mistake other MMO's have made in the recent patch and under deliver on their promised features. Time will tell but hopefully lessons have been learned from the errors of others and the launch will be flawless......

Skills

Depending on your character's class you have a set of skills that are either working in the background while you play, or you will have to activate them yourself by using various abilities. When you gain a level you may also gain a set of points you can invest in these skills to make them more potent. You invest skill points through the character window.

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Here are some of the most important skills:

Perception:...

Guardians are the most heavily armored and well drilled soldiers in Hyboria. Capable of withstanding punishment like no other, they also have an array of deadly attacks that deal devastating damage.

There is no more imposing sight in battle than a phalanx of guardians in full plate armor bearing sword and shield or ranked behind an impenetrable wall of pikes.

The guardian is the sturdiest of all the soldiers and their strength lies in their ability to mitigate damage with...

Dark Templars combine heavy armor, martial prowess and blood-thirsty magic with an all consuming desire for triumph.

They are warriors who have sold their humanity for unholy might, the power to feed upon the life of their enemies, spells that can reflect enemy attacks and unnatural powers of rejuvenation that have a darker, nightmarish twist to them.

Dark Templars wear heavy battle armor, have the lethal offensive capability of an expert soldier and wield vile sorcery....

Conquerors are a sword-wielding fusion of heavy armor and battlefield command, rare individuals rising from the ranks of Aquilonian generals and barbarous Cimmerian war-leaders.

The conqueror’s martial might is almost unparalleled and they manipulate those fighting around them inspiring allies, demoralizing foes and drawing strength from the fury of battle.

Conquerors are capable soldiers but their ability to augment their allies with battle-cries and inspirational...

Rangers are the finest marksmen in Hyboria, capable of stalking an enemy and delivering devastating shots with pinpoint accuracy.

From the skilled woodsmen of the Bossonian Marches to the shortbow wielding horsemen of the Stygian desert, their skills with a bow set them apart from other warriors.

With an arsenal of specialist shots that can pin an enemy down, start bleeding wounds or pierce an enemy’s heart, they are difficult opponents. Knights fall to their...

The barbarian is one of the most dangerous and feared sights on the battlefield. Their combat style focuses on strength, aggression, and relentless assault.

Whether wielding two-handed weapons that sweep through enemy lines or fighting with a weapon in each hand, when the opportunity to deliver that devastating killing blow comes, they are ready.

Wounding barbarians enrages them, making them stronger and more deadly in battle and their varied array of powerful attacks can...

Assassins are the most lethal killers in Hyboria. Those aspiring to the top of this profession face the most deadly regime of training, discipline, and study, but the ones that survive are executioners supreme.

No other class can deliver blows as deadly as an assassin. Their arsenal of lethal combos is complemented by their ability to slip past enemies unseen.

Assassins can dual wield daggers with lightning speed and can modify their attacks against specific targets, such...

These priests wield the awesome destructive might of Set, the snake god of Stygia.

This elder god, ancient when man was young, rewards his most faithful disciplies with mighty powers; lightning strikes that can tear the tops from mountains or lay waste to entire regions.

These followers of Set are renowned for the obliteration and ruin that follows in their wake, but like other priests, they have the power to heal en masse and restore life. As well as a variety of martial...

Priests of Mitra wield divine power that can aid, heal, and even bring the dead to life.

Their god is one of justice, security, and liberty, and their followers are ready to fight to ensure these freedoms and to battle against oppression, tyranny, and villainy. Priests of Mitra also have the strongest healing powers. They also have the ability to bombard the enemy with holy damage.

Priests of Mitra wear light armor and use martial weapons. Their powers to augment those...

The spirit of nature is strong in Cimmeria and has begun to manifest itself amongst the barbarians of the north.

Bear shamans can inherit aspects of the great bear like claws, savage strength or adrenaline surges and use spirit totems that heal and counter-attack enemy blows. They can also gain the power to heal and eventually resurrect fallen companions.

Bear shamans are able to equip the heaviest priest armor (medium) and are the sturdiest of all the priests. Capable of...

Necromancers summon and command the undead, and they are legion. Their ghoulish minions are capable of tearing men apart or casting their own death magic.

The rotten corpses of the dead follow wherever the necromancer leads.

The dark magic wielded by necromancers  ranges from the unholy to pestilent corruption and the freezing touch of death. Through careful study they can develop the ability to call corpses from the earth to rise up and surround a foe or even attain...

Heralds of Xotli are hybrids of the mage and soldier archetypes who wield alien spells and two handed weapons, making them a formidable enemy on the battlefield.

This class is for players who want to master both brutal swordplay and spectacular sorcery.

The result of demonology that went beyond the realms of hell and earth and out into the cold empty wastes beyond the realm of existence, they now faithfully serve Xotli, a demon-god of the Elder Night and an entity even the...

The demonologist is the mightiest of sorcerers, wielding the power of hell and earth and capable of conjuring pillars of flame or titanic storms of electricity.

So great is their occult knowledge they can bargain a servant of hell into doing their bidding, a guardian daemon of warped beauty and terrible might.

Demonologists concentrate solely on sorcery and the potency of their spells is unmatched, as capable of eliminating a single enemy in a hellish inferno as destroying...

There are four main gods that are worshiped throughout Hyboria. These four as the following:

DERKETO -----

The Goddess Derketo - 'They will put her through paces she never dreamed of! She is too soft to endure what I have thrived on. I am a daughter of Luxur, and before I had known fifteen summers I had been led through the temples of Derketo, the dusky goddess, and had been initiated into the mysteries'. – The Slithering Shadow, R. E....

At launch, There will be three basic kinds of servers to play on.

PvE: PvE (or player-versus-environment) servers focus largely on players fighting against computer-controlled monsters and characters, with PvP limited to areas set aside expressly for that purpose.


PvP: PvP (or player-versus-player) servers have more widespread PvP rulesets, encouraging players to fight against each other.

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There are 3 basic mounts known in Hyboria at this time. They vary in ability, maneuverability, and speed. These three are the Horse, the Mammoth and the Rhino. Here are more details about each of them:

 

The Horse: A reliable mount, the horse is the most common companion an adventurer can have in Hyboria. They come in many different varieties, from armored giants to quicker steeds.

Note: This is the the quickest mounts you can...

Not everyone can be clobbered and stripped of all material possessions. Sometimes, for instance, the other guy is bigger than you are and you’ll actually have to dig deep in your pocket and pay for what you want. This section provides a brief overview of the economic world of Hyboria.

Hyborian Currency

There are four types of currency in Age of Conan: gold, silver, copper, and tin. One hundred units of one currency represent one...

Much is made of attacking in Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures, but sometimes you want to catch your breath or sometimes you’re surrounded by raging Picts.

Sometimes, it’s time for a little defense. There are two kinds of defense in Age of Conan: passive defense and active defense.


Passive Defense

Passive defense means, simply, you don’t have to do anything to make it work. This area of your defense...

Battling your way across Hyboria is no easy task. You’ll want to wield the best weapons that money can buy (or that can be pried from the corpses from your enemies).

Here are some important examples of weapons:

 

Edged weapons
This is mostly used to categorize various types of swords, weapons designed to slice, cut and make your enemy bleed! Can be used in one hand, two hands or dual...

Succeeding in battle takes more than just a good weapon. It also requires that you have the right outfit to defend yourself properly from the attacks of your enemy. Armor is divided into different types such as cloth, leather, plate and more.

Here is some of the armor types explained:


Cloth armor
This material provides the least amount of defense, but allows the...

Age of Conan sports a number of choices for the PvP player, everything from casual, instant fun minigames to massive siege battles to an entire PvP server with friends to make and foes to kill.

Your PvP options include:

PvP Minigames
Age of Conan’s PvP minigames are intended as “pick up and play” fun, something easy to get into solo or with a group of friends, a way to hop...

Hyboria is populated by 3 races of man. Each are very distinct in their cultural background as well as their outlooks on life and their "place" in the grander scheme of things. These races are The Aquilonians, the Cimmerians, and the Stygians. These 3 races are detailed below:

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Your character has a set of base attributes that are automatically increased when you gain new levels. Attributes have a direct impact on your character's abilities and powers.

Here are some of the most important attributes:

Strength: Gives you a damage bonus for melee attacks and also increases the attack rating for certain weapons.

Dexterity: Gives you a bonus to your defense rating...

The infamous is hard at work grinding out his latest creation, this site. More things to come for certain and new features that he has not used elsewhere. Wish the monkey luck and toss him many bananas to keep him motivated over there in coder hell!