The official Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures patch notes for the June 23 update have been released.  It seems that the developers made good on fixing some of the problems in siege warfare, as well as added a number of changes that we're sure players will enjoy. Want to see the patch notes for yourself? Then head on over to the full article.

Funcom's Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures servers were taken down (and are still down as of this article's writing) so that the developers could apply a number of bugfixes, and improve the gameplay balance. Want to know what the devs are changing? Then head on over to the full article for the full patch notes.

*update* The servers are now up! So you can now check out the fixes first hand!

For many a player at SOE's Vanguard MMORPG, the next thing to do come level 45 is to beef up your arsenal with the highly coveted swamp armor sets. Wondering what sort of perks and requisites your potential new war wear has? Visit the full article and find out!

 

When traveling from Ost Guruth to Garth Agarwen, adventurers beware. You'd have to pass through treacherous areas such as the Haragrim swamp and the corrupted forest of Agamaur. There are a number of quest on the way (Lone-Lands to Bree-Land) and of course, players are encouraged to take advantage of it.

Garth Argawen is littered with ruins, eerie red trees, and pools of water. Its denizens are the Hillmen of Rhudaur and the Shades of Arthedain, both in service of the Red-maid. Adventurers will find that wandering around Garth Arawen is no easy feat as groups of hillmen and gloom-waters lurk around the ruins.

As adventurers travel deeper into Garth Argawen, they will encounter a glade where they will meet a corrupted tree Grimbark, formerly named Oakenbark. It will make full use of its branches and roots to stop adventurers from going any further. It also drops beehives to eliminate threats.

Ready to go against a giant tree? Arm yourselves.

  

Over at TenTonHammer, they have a preview of The Slave Pens, an instanced area meant for level 62-64 characters. The preview gets a bit long, so we'll just serve you guys with the juicy bits of the treat, mob info and boss info for that instance. If you want the full meal, you can click on our source link below.

The preview does come with a warning though - and that everything in it is from the beta. Obviously there may be some changes to WoW: The Burning Crusade before the release.

Here be the details:

• The instance is full of lobster and crab type creatures. If you're wearing cloth or leather armor, be careful about pulling aggro. Be wary of the female naga casters and the elite guards. The female casters can mind control, and the elite guards have a magic shield that pops every now and then that renders them immune to damage. Something similar to the paladins bubble.
• Mennu the Betrayer can be found patrolling a ramp surrounded by groups of other MOBs. He's a hard hitting boss and he pops totems every now and then. A quick kill is a must.
• Rockmar the Crackler is a giant lobster. He seems simple enough, but he's got a debuff called grievous wound that causes damage-over-time to any opponent he's in close combat with.
• Quagmarran is a giant swamp creature with tentacle arms. He has a cleave attack that can hit everyone in his front arc. He also has a poison volley attack that hits everyone in about a 40 yard range. He also has a poison debuff that did 600 - 800 damage a tic. Ouchies. Given his abilities and the fact that he hits hard, tanking to protect your team can be difficult.

The report says that it isn't uncommon to see players starting to trade off damage bonuses to get more stamina on their healing items. It only makes sense. Given these hard hitting bosses, you need the health. Okay, so now that you know the stuff to expect on that instance, will you put in the time so you could run through that map?

Seems like environmental problems stemming from pollution aren't unique to the "real" world. Even as corporate industrialists and developers foul the ecosystems and desertification expands on planet Earth, the Withered Aegis of Istaria are killing off the wetlands south of Harro, expanding the Deadlands as their fort construction wreaks havoc with the delicate ecology of the Spiritous Swamp.

Unlike most creatures on Earth, however, their counterparts in the world of Tulga Games' Horizons appear to be fighting back as the native bloodsnout gruok and purple spiders start exhibiting atypically aggressive behaviors. According to NNRI associate researcher Saja, this new, aggressive behavior is a response to the spreading Blight:

“.. the common bloodsnout [and] purple spiders normally leave you alone unless you are a threat to their hatchlings...the constant lightning and gloom of a Blight Maelstrom is a radical change from the normal swamp environs. It must be terribly frightening for the poor creatures. They can’t express what they’re feeling in words, so they express it in actions. They don’t really mean to be vicious; they just want someone to know they’re hurt and scared.”

Istarian war correspondents report that Blight Blooms are popping up south of the Sandstone Quarry. There's a lot of the Undead running around, so travelers in that area should exercise caution.