Yes, Legends of Norrath is an online collectible card game with a story, Against the Void is the second chapter in a three-part epic involving the Ethernauts, with elements that should be familiar to players of the Everquest 2 expansion The Shadow Odyssey. Along with advancing the story, the new expansion adds new [;ayer avatars, 16 new loot cards, new game mechanics, and of course, more than 280 new cards.

With the Legends of Norrath card game proving so popular, SOE is also extending it's 5 booster pack per month promotion for current paying Everquest and Everquest II subscribers, meaning that even if you don't wish to participate the cards are still there...waiting....watching.

THE ODYSSEY OF THE ETHERNAUTS CONTINUES IN LEGENDS OF NORRATH AGAINST THE VOID

Five Booster Pack Promotion to Continue

DENVER, COLO. – Jan. 15, 2009 – Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) announced today that the Ethernauts’ journey continues with the sixth Legends of Norrath™ set, Against the Void.

Scheduled for release next month, Against the Void pushes the epic story of the previous set, Ethernauts, into dark new territory, while also adding more than 280 new gameplay cards, 16 new loot cards for both EverQuest® and EverQuest® II, two new playable avatar races, and 10 brand-new scenarios.

In response to Legends of Norrath’s overwhelming success, SOE is also extending its five booster pack promotion so that all EverQuest® and EverQuest® II subscribers with paid subscriptions in good standing will receive five digital Legends of Norrath trading card booster packs per month at no additional cost.

“The response to the five booster pack promotion has exceeded our expectations, which is why we’re continuing it with Against the Void,” said Scott Martins, director of development for SOE Denver. “We love seeing all the new faces in our lobbies and tournaments, and there really is no better time for new players to try Legends of Norrath.”

Against the Void Features:

The Story of the Ethernauts Continues – Against the Void is the second of three chapters in the epic Ethernauts storyline! Players of EverQuest® II The Shadow Odyssey™ will instantly recognize the characters and settings from Ethernauts and Against the Void, and learn more about the backstory of the most recent MMO release.

New Cards – More than 280 new gameplay cards are available through booster packs, tournaments, promotions and scenarios.

New Gameplay – Cards with the new keyword “Attuned” change factions to match the player’s avatar, opening up exciting new gameplay strategies.

New Loot! – How would you like your very own traveling band? Or turn yourself into a Voidman Warrior? Or ride through Norrath on a Fiery Dire Bear or White Lion? This is all possible with 16 new loot cards each for EverQuest and EverQuest II.

New Playable Avatars and Characters – Against the Void introduces new Fae and Arasai playable avatars, and features units representing Knights, Gnomes, Orcs and Iksars.

New Scenarios – Against the Void will offer 10 brand-new scenarios, continuing the story of the Ethernauts and offering exciting loot for completing certain milestones. You’ll have to fight your way through a variety of different enemies before the final battle with Sartar the Unrivaled, a mighty Iskar hero!

Five Booster Packs per Month Extended! – SOE is extending its five booster pack per month promotions to EverQuest and EverQuest II subscribers with current, paid accounts in good standing. This is a great way to quickly build a collection of cards to bring into Legends of Norrath and begin playing.

Legends of Norrath Against the Void will be available in February in 15-card booster packs for $2.99 USD (plus applicable taxes). Also look for the Ethernauts Legendary Starter Pack for $19.99 USD (plus applicable taxes).

Developed at SOE’s Denver studio, Legends of Norrath is the only online trading card game based on and playable from within SOE’s popular EverQuest and EverQuest II MMOs, as well as from a free stand-alone client using a free SOE Station Account ID (available at www.station.com). Players can challenge opponents on their game server and across other EverQuest and EverQuest II servers.

To get started, players can for free, test their skills 24 hours a day against AI and real opponents, and then head over to the tournament lobby to compete. Tournament eligibility is limited and subject to Official Rules. Residents of certain territories are ineligible to participate in LoN tournament play. Please see the for details. For a schedule of events, rules and further details, see the or the . For more information on Legends of Norrath, visit the website at www.legendsofnorrath.com.

SOE said new gameplay will be introduced to build on the old system and allow for more strategies and combos in the online card-based strategy title. It adds 250 new cards, new loot and promo cards, and a new island guardian, Chel'Drak the dragon turtle (is it a dragon or a turtle? Seriously, man).

According to SOE, LoN players have thrown down over a million matches since the title launched nine months ago. Oathbreaker's to be the last release before the August tournament at Gen Con Indy - wannabe competitors must qualify by July 12-13. Why not try, if you're into it? There's $100,000 at stake!

Full details after the jump.

WITH MORE THAN ONE MILLION LEGENDS OF NORRATH™ MATCHES PLAYED TO DATE,

EVERQUEST® FRANCHISE ONLINE STRATEGY GAME INTRODUCES OATHBREAKER TO THE VIRTUAL PLAYMAT

Release Precedes $100K World Championship Event at Gen Con Indy 2008

DENVER, COLO. – June 19, 2008 – Sony Online Entertainment LLC announced the release of Oathbreaker, the fourth set of the EverQuest® franchise online strategy game, Legends of Norrath™. Oathbreaker continues to draw upon the influence of SOE’s groundbreaking EverQuest® franchise, adding fun and familiar elements, including items and characters beautifully illustrated with high-fantasy flair. Oathbreaker will enthrall players with a tale of corruption from within, and redemption that comes at a terrible cost, providing an unprecedented level of drama in the ongoing saga. While Oathbreaker brings the story of your Oathbound hero to a dramatic finale, new gameplay builds on existing functionality and allows for even more creative strategies to emerge.

"In just over nine months since launch, Legends of Norrath has had more than one million matches,” said Scott Martins, director of development, SOE Denver. “And, with the introduction of Oathbreaker, many more matches are on the horizon. There are more ways than ever to enhance your strategies, explore different decks and try out new combos. We're eager to introduce the new raid and open up cooperative play. And, with the Monthly Sprint Tournaments that started in early June, there are more opportunities for players to climb the rankings and earn special promo cards and free loot.”

Not only does Oathbreaker complete the story arc which originated with LoN’s first set, Oathbound – it’s also the last LoN release before the World Championship event at Gen Con Indy, August 14-17, where up to 32 finalists are slated to compete for up to $100,000 in cash prizes. July 12-13 marks the last opportunity to compete in a monthly online Championship Qualifier tournament before the World Championship event. At Gen Con, two days of qualification heats, open to all Gen Con attendees 18 and older, will take place before the final championship day.

Developed at SOE’s Denver studio, Legends of Norrath is the only online strategy game based on and playable from SOE’s popular EverQuest® and EverQuest® II MMOs, as well as from a stand-alone client using a free SOE Station Account (available at www.station.com). Players can challenge opponents on their game server and across other EQ and EQII servers.

Oathbreaker’s features include:

New Cards – More than 250 new cards for your online arsenal! Collect all 210 base set cards, four starter decks featuring 16 new quests and three random rares, 10 scenario rewards, fantastic new loot cards for EverQuest and EverQuest II and lots of new promotional cards.

Play For Free - SOE is providing all registered LoN users even more complimentary content and bonus features in the game client, including ten new scenarios that tell the tale of Oathbreaker and a brand new raid. Go to www.legendsofnorrath.com for complete details.

New Raid Play – In the Antechamber of Fate, up to four players can face off against the powerful island guardian Chel’Drak, the dragon turtle!

New Gameplay – “Charge” is a new keyword that provides additional bonuses to cards while players have, or get rid of, their charge tokens. Re-linkable navigation offers greater flexibility in play by allowing linked cards to be linked again to a new target.

New Faces - Delve into new avatar races (Froglok and Erudite), unit types, legends, keywords and abilities. Explore more of your favorite EverQuest and EverQuest II classes with the introduction of “unarmed” Monks, Coercers, Templars and Beastlords (with their warder pets)!

Oathbreaker cards will be available via digital download from SOE’s Station Store in both 58-card digital starter decks for $9.99 (plus any applicable taxes), and 15-card digital booster packs for $2.99 (plus any applicable taxes).

To get started, players can download the client for free, test their skills 24 hours a day against AI and real opponents, and then head over to the tournament lobby to compete. Monthly Championship Qualifier eligibility limited and subject to Official Rules. Residents of certain territories are not eligible to participate in LoN tournaments with rewards. Please see the EULA for details. For a schedule of events, rules and further details, see the Events Calendar and the Tournaments page.

By: Brian Crecente

The next big thing in massively multiplayer online games might very well be the decidedly old school world of card games.

Online trading card games to be specific.

Since its August launch inside Everquest and Everquest II more than 111,000 matches of the Everquest-themed online trading card game Legends of Norrath have been played.

SOE president John Smedley told me in a recent interview that more than 30 percent of the MMOs' players are currently playing the trading card game and that they've sold more than 5,000 virtual boxes of booster packs for about $100 a pop.

"There are loot cards in the packs that give them items they can use in Everquest, but we don't think that's why they are buying the boxes," he said. "We believe we are giving people other avenues of gameplay within a game."
The game is so successful that the Everquest teams are now working on creating places within the MMOs that will be used exclusively for playing the game.

"We've always told the story of people going into taverns and playing the games," Smedley said. "People were complaining about not being able to find a quiet place to play the game. We're thinking of creating places, sort of like a library, where people can play without having to worry about people running by and spamming them."

And that new space better come soon, earlier this month Sony Online Entertainment announced that the game would be now available free to anyone, whether they play Everquest or Everquest II. The stand-alone game only requires a free login to Sony's Station.

"I think it's going to take off in a lot of ways," Smedley said. "Standalone games are more conducive to quick games. This game was designed with 15 minute play sessions in mind in the first place."

Now Smedley and his teams are looking at their other massively multiplayer online games to see which ones might work with new trading card games.

"We are actively looking at other games we might want to put this into," he said. "They would be similar styles of games but not identical. It might not be a collectible card game, we might build a major strategy game."

The games might not even use cards. Sony Online Entertainment - Denver, which built the engine that powers the Legends of Norrath, are also responsible for a fairly successful online version of Pirates. In the game players collect and build small, virtual 3D ships and then wage battles.

"It's not just about cards, cards are just one representation," he said. "If you think just about collectible stuff, imagine all of the things we could do."

Smedley also has plenty of plans for Norrath, including regular expansions the first of which will be announced soon.

It's too soon to tell if all of this interest in Norrath is translating to a renewed interest in the massively multiplayer games that it is based on, Smedley said.

"This weekend we saw our concurrent usage go up with both, he said. "It's too soon to tell if subscriptions are going up. To be honest with you it has gone way better than I had even hoped for."

LEGENDS OF NORRATHTM ONLINE TRADING CARD GAME NOW AVAILABLE FOR EVERYONE Free Client Allows Anyone to Play Online Game Based on Popular MMO Franchises

DENVER, CO - September 12, 2007 - On the heels of a successful release to the EverQuest® and EverQuest® II player communities, Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE), a global leader in the online entertainment industry, has released a free stand-alone version of the client for Legends of Norrath™, the online trading card game based on its well-known and popular EverQuest Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) game franchises.

Developed at SOE's Denver, CO studio, Oathbound is the first release in the Legends of Norrath storyline. Oathbound features more than 375 digital cards and is available in both 55-card digital starter decks and 15-card digital booster packs. In this first release, players become part of a clandestine, secret war between the forces of Order and Chaos. Once jailed on the Plane of Justice, a mysterious tribunal offers them a chance for freedom and redemption. In swearing allegiance to the side of Order, players become Oathbound, and fight against the forces of Chaos to prevent Norrath from being plunged into a bloody and eternal war.

"When we showed Legends of Norrath at GenCon last month, it was just as big a hit with hobby and strategy gamers as it has been with our EQ and EQII players," said Scott Martins, Director of Development for SOE-Denver. "We've had a great run so far with the exclusive access we've provided for our existing fans, and can't wait to bring it to a much wider audience with today's release. New players will be able to enjoy the game in a single worldwide community with thousands of people that span its own client as well as both of our EverQuest MMOs."

In addition to player vs. player combat, Legends of Norrath is provides several modes of gameplay and a variety of activities, including a sophisticated, re-playable AI system for single-player campaigns, easy to use management tools and numerous Casual and Tournament game lobbies. Victory can be achieved by completing quests or defeating your opponent's avatar, enabling players to employ their own unique strategies for victory. The game also features a robust loot system; more than 30 loot items each for EQ and EQII are available, including player mounts, potions, clothing and spells.

The digital starter decks (55 cards) are available for $9.99 (plus any applicable taxes), with digital booster packs (15 cards) selling for $2.99 (plus any applicable taxes). For more information on Legends of Norrath, visit the website at www.legendsofnorrath.com.

The basic concept is that you're going up against an opponent and there are multiple ways to win. You play an avatar, and your opponent plays an avatar, and the idea is you can either win by killing your opponent's avatar or by completing quests. You can put certain quests into your deck, and you can use abilities to actually go after these quests. If you have a particular quest in mind you can use your ability cards to solve each quest. Your opponent, though, can also put down monsters and use abilities to block you from completing that quest. So you can take two paths: you can either try to kill the other person's avatar directly, or you can try to complete things by solving quests. The idea is that you have strategic options in the fight.

This quote is taken straight from the MMOG Nation article which, if you're interested in the game, I suggest you go check out. It's well done, asks all the right questions and is full of great info. Congrats to Michael from MMOGN on scoring such a terrific interview.

John Smedley Interview On Legends of Norrath [MMOG Nation]