Ahhh this bittersweet tale from when I was but a scrub coming up on rallos zek.

I had a rogue that I leveled up to 20 then later delevelled to 10 to pk noobs in gfay. I had pretty mediocre gear and a decent piercing weapon at the time so I could own most people around my level unless they were twinked (which was much more uncommon on live at the time unlike how everyone thinks their alts on p99.)

There were a couple of infamous twinked and delevelled rogues from flowers of happiness that would terrorize gfay much more successfully than me. I remember one was a male dwarf named Jooke and there was a female dwarf with a B name, I think Breezi or something like that. I had been rekt by them numerous times.

Anyways, one day i was sneaking about and spied a twinked out bard chilling with a group on Orc hill. Just as I was about to attack, these 2 twinked FoH rogues appeared and back stabbed the guy. I stabbed immediately after and landed the killing blow. With my hands shaking I quickly looted him and selected the best piece I could find, an ikky bp (which were worth bank at the time!)

I bagged the armor just in time for the 2 rogues to murder me. I spawned and I remember Jooke immediately start sending me tells and saying he would trade me whatever crappy 100pish item they looted from me in exchange for the ikky bp (lol yeah right) that was "rightfully theirs." I told him to piss off and he threatened to Pk me all the time (which they already did anyways, duh.) The bard was also messaging me, offering to buy the BP back but I just laughed.

This was my ticket to the good loots! I was going to sell it and get a bunch of nice stuff finally! After auctioning for a while I talked to a guy who said he would give me plat plus jboots for it. My 16 year old gullible ass gave him the bp up front and he logged to get his alt for the jboots turn in. Spoiler alert: it never happened.

So it was an emotional roller coaster for my noob ass at the time but I will always remember Jooke, the bard and those awesome jboots I never got D:

But Sullon Zek WAS teams, are you possibly referring to Rallos Zek?

I remember vividly my first exciting experience on Morrell Thule which probably cemented EQ into my psyche- I had made a dwarf Paladin and leveled him up to like 5 or something and left the safety of the newbie area and made my way to the crossroads in BB.

Up to that point I had only seen dwarves so I was amazed when this giant guy came running by in what looked like the most badass armor (it was a barbarian in banded- I know that now). He goes running by and I decide I gotta see where this studly dude is headed so I take off after him and decide to follow him- long story short I follow him all the way into Dagnor's Cauldron and get hopelessly lost. In the meantime night falls and I have no idea where the tall guy went to or how to get out of this crazy place with all of the rocks and crevices that all look the same etc. Eventually I made my way back to the zoneline (no idea how I found it, just stumbling around in the dark and trying to avoid all of the aqua goblins and other scary stuff that's wandering around in DC). I then start making my way back through Butcherblock and agro a couple goblins who start chasing me. I'll never forget I saw the torch lights from the guard station at the crossroads and start bee-lining for them and get rescued at the last second by Nyzil Bloodforge. I was literally shaking I was so freakin scared of dying and losing my precious level 5 corpse.

Like a week later I dumped that guy when they opened Terris Thule and started on what eventually became my main chars that I played until GoD. Don't think I was ever that scared again in any game though.

Ran around FelwitheB with ogre friend playing hide and seek in our 20s.
Then got killed by elf guildmaster.

I wasn't even familiar with the term 'RPG' at the time (was playing old flight sims and never touched DnD or RPG stuff). I was also playing some weird online 3D chats software, and IRC.

I got into the EQ closed beta (I felt it lasted a very long time before retail). But I didn't really know it was a 'game'. I thought of it more of a 3D 'world' or another chat with some activities.

I made a newbie in Halas and saw NPCs everywhere. I didn't know what an NPC was, what the point of them was or anything - they were casting spells on themselves. I thought they were other players. So I spent the first 15-20 mins walking up to all the NPCs who were static saying 'hi'... 'a/s/l' ... 'where ya from'... no answers, I thought maybe I was using chat wrong or something.

Man I must have spent days and days figuring out the town, walking around, typing to NPCs, I'd see another player run by and I'd go chase them and say STOP!!! until they turned around, then I'd ask a million questions.

One gave me a whole setup of banded, and a weapon - and said 'Go fight stuff'... I had no idea what that meant, fight? I didn't know this game had combat. Well... I ended up going to fight outside of Halas (in Everfrost) and started to slowly figure stuff out. Found out how to use the chat, found out how to /tell, found out about skills, stats (stat points from a non rpg player? WTF?). Second day I log in ready to go 'fight'... I remember the GMs were in everfrost, controlling a fire giant and an ice giant to fight each other, and tons of players around betting on them and stuff. Anyways that was the 'start' of my career. I had many other epic moments later, getting my Primal Spear on my rogue, getting my rogue Epic, pulling MANY all nighters, skipping school, faking sick, just to play all day long.

I remember very vividly when it became night time I was blown away, or rain, or if other players walked by me doing their own thing, I Swore i stopped everyone just to chat. I came from IRC/chat programs and was under the impression the game was a social game more than some sort of fledged out actual game, that all came much later.

I have very similar fond memories of the early stages of AC as well. Running through the night, seeing a torch from another player way in the distance... panicking while I get to them safely, saying hi, killing stuff together.

Ahhhhhhh

I miss running throught the Warsliks Woods with my old iksar friends

I remember getting lost trying to get out of Surefall glade with no torch and no clue in June '99. I remember standing back to back on top of a hill with another ranger during the Halloween event against wave after wave of skeletons, when the sun rose we were the only two still left alive. I remember the war between the Skorchers and the Grudge Bearers, and it's bloody conclusion in the noob fields of Freeport while the hot sun burned down. I remember when they oopsied during Luclin and turned the archery delay to 0 for about 6 hours. Mostly I remember my friends in Arcane Phalanx.

When Velious went live I created a level 1 human and went on an adventure to Thurgadin, sow-less, human night vision, and clip plane turned way down to keep framerates up on my old pc.

Managed the run deathless, somehow avoided aggro, and was even accused of getting help cause it was apparently "impossible" to get there otherwise. :mad:

HA! I now remember when I also seen some dude and he had a HELM on!!! I don't think I had seen anyone with a helmet, and the guy had a surname too. I asked him how he had a last name I don't remember what he said probably told me he was level 20 (WOW!!!!) This guy was a barbarian too, I distinctly remember the horned helm which really was awesome to me. rofl.

Me and my roommate were in Darkenbane on RZ, one day I de-guilded so I could get some xp with him(He was pretty well known pk so dropping tag meant nothing for him) I got a tell from someone in EW saying if I knew I was grouped with someone from DB. I was like no....oh shit you want to help me kill him? So the sucker came at us thinking I was gonna help him kill my buddy ......lol oh man I got so much hate for that