All of the dungeons work at having new features or improved features and great story line. And based on the "Rainbow in the Dark", I have to say they did a great job of succeeding.
After saving all of the missing members of The Twelve, it was time to put a stop to Arraetrikos evil plans. So into the Shroud we went. The Shroud is the raid portion of the module and I just have to say "Awesome!"
One thing that makes this raid different than previous raids is that you can see the entire area you are battling through. So in standing in stage 3 you can actually see where you have been. Oh the great outdoors :)
So entering in the first stage we are presented with a Gauntlet where we must fight off waves of Troglodytes, while trying to destroy the portals.
The Gauntlet offers a nice homage to the arcade classic that I used to have rolls of quarters sitting ready to go with my friends. In this homage, we see the dead party of four in front of the first portal. On each of their bodies is a relic item that is very useful during this stage. The plus side here is that each of the items is awesome power, but the downside is that they are only usable in the Gauntlet.
So we start battling wave after wave of portals and Troglodytes as they appear making sure not to be too slow at taking them out. One wave we were a bit slow and face to face with the Orthon. Now he is bad enough, but our guides warned us that if you really decide to take the slow road even more trouble comes as the master of the portal will visit. However, I will leave the details of the portal master a surprise for you. Oh and if you do get the pleasure of meeting the portal master, dispatch him quickly.
Finishing off the last of the portals we are able to move forward to our just treasure for running the Gauntlet. A couple of chests and a rather weird looking device almost like a squished Beholder. Our tour guides proceeded to explain this intriguing device. It is called an Eldritch device. Opening the device up I was presented with several slots where I could put items in. Having looted the chests, I had received a few items that were labeled usable by an Eldritch device. Now to understand the mechanics of this device I was handed a Green Steel Warhammer and a few components. Sorry, I am going to keep it a surprise on what I was given to use. However, a small hint for all you old time Asheron's Call players: Remember the days of figuring our spell recipes? I so loved trying different tapers and such. On the bright side with over one thousand recipes and thousands of combinations, we don't have to worry about our unique character taper.
So, I insert my warhammer, my new components, and click the Forge button. The Eldritch device starts closing, makes some noises and spits out my Green Steel Warhammer with some really nice properties added. Our illustrious guides tell us that we will visit another of these later and we will get a chance to see more of the devices abilities later and how the power shards required affect the outcome of the item.
With me new Warhammer in hand, we are off to visit the next stage of our raid encounter. Here we pay homage to the days of Pac-Man. Our party enters into the building spread out and we must find our way to the center. Wandering around in almost a maze like fashion we all get to the center we come across a crystal and some mean boss creatures. Did I mention mean? Yeah after getting pummeled to the ground a few times, JR and I were able to discover what needed to be done. Of course the devs were enjoying watching the torture and helped up achieve the goal of the area. And you ask why this area homage to Pac-Man is? Well what do the ghosts do after they are beaten? You will see!
