Has mentoring become the big thing lately? We saw it in EQ2 and I think they helped to create a desired feature which is remarkably brilliant. Out level someone? No big deal. Just delevel yourself (without the delevel experience loss of Everquest, ohhh how I hated dedinging!) and enjoy playing with your friends, or in instant adventures, or getting your quests done that have been sitting around for the past year.
Do you have an old favorite zone that you haven’t visited recently? And why haven’t you visited them? No experience gain, already finished your achievements, it’s not as much fun to kill grey mobs, so why go back? There are many zones like that in the gaming world. Zones we just leave behind and rarely think of again, some of them our favorites, some of them not so much. But they’re there waiting for some love.
With Rift’s upcoming 1.9 patch we will all be able to go back to those zones. And exactly how will this be done in Rift?
Players will be able to de-level themselves in order to either match a lower level player, or to set the level of their choice in order to complete lower level content. When a player lowers their level, they are known as an Ascended Mentor. Because of this, their effectiveness is reduced as a result. — Walsingham
Rift already works towards getting us to play together but this was one thing I felt was missing in the game. I know I didn’t love Gloamwood while I was leveling, especially the Hag quest line. And of course I did that before they changed werewolf form with the Gloamwood residents. I was attacked so many times after I ported over to Gloamwood just to realize, two seconds too late of course, that I was about to turn into a werewolf and be cannon fodder yet again. But that was ok. I got the quest line done and left Gloamwood behind, way, way behind! But, now that I’ve been away for awhile, I find myself missing it’s dreariness, it’s deep, dark, psyche digging, emo making ways are calling to me again. But there was no reason for me to really go back, except for my morbid sense of nostalgia, until now.
Walsingham goes on to explain exactly how mentoring in Rift will work:
Mentors receive appropriate XP rewards because content that would be grey, now registers and awards according to their modified level. Players in a group with an Ascended Mentor, whose natural level is close to the Ascended Mentor’s level, are known as Ascended Apprentices. Ascended Mentors and Ascended Apprentices receive benefits from grouping together. This system broadens the amount of content higher level players can be rewarded for, and provides lower level players with a wider pool of people to group with.
Fantastic! Finally, those friends that I’ve brought into Rift after bending their ears for a full year, I can now even PLAY WITH! What a novel idea. But more importantly, those pesky quests that I didn’t finish and didn’t want to take the time to finish are now just waiting for me.
Also, if you are feeling a tad nostalgic right click your portrait to make yourself your desired level and then join in on instant adventures. Makes living in Telera an entirely new experience, one I think we all will enjoy!
If you can’t tell, I love this idea. Just don’t forget you’re set as an Ascended Mentor and zone into Ember Isle. That won’t be pretty.
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