Access

The first part of the Skirmish system we looked at adding to instances was Skirmish Join. For a long time within MMOs, it was accepted that part of playing an instance was the time spent to gather your party, get all of the quests a space has to offer, and travel to the instance. Depending on how many people you needed, where they started out at, and where the instance entrance was, this could actually take more time and coordination than playing the actual instance.

With Skirmishes, this paradigm changed dramatically. We didn’t require you run to a door; you could simply open a panel and select the space you wanted. We didn’t require you to gather your party; they all teleported in from wherever in the world they were currently at. We didn’t require you to visit a bunch of NPCs strewn over the world to pick up quests; they were automatically bestowed upon entering the Skirmish. This opened up the Skirmish spaces to be played by the highest possible number of people and also ensured a better play experience for all involved. Play time was spent in the actual Skirmishes and playing the content, not in travel and organization.

For Volume III, Book 2, we’ve renamed the Skirmish Join panel to be the new Instance Join panel. Within it there are currently two tabs: Classic and Skirmish. The Skirmish tab is probably familiar to most of you, so I won’t cover it here; there are previous dev diaries that focus on that part. The Classic tab is the new one and includes every replayable instance in the game. This includes all instances from Shadows of Angmar through Mines of Moria and Siege of Mirkwood. There are 39 entries in all (there’s a list at the end of the series of articles), ranging from Garth Agarwen, to Carn Dûm, to the Vile Maw, to Sammath Gûl and dozens more. Every 3, 6, and 12-man replayable instance in the game is now accessible through Instance Join.

Just like Skirmishes, once you select one, you’ll receive a window to travel now, as will all players in your fellowship. You’ll all teleport in from wherever you are, be able to play and enjoy the instance together, and be placed back where you each came from when you’re done. Unlike Skirmishes, instances actually have entrances in the world. Those still exist, and if you run to the entrance, the instance join panel will open with the instance you’re trying to enter highlighted. The exit doors at the start of instances also exist and running into those will teleport you back to wherever you entered from.