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Just started out in Jobe? Don't know what to do? Well,
getting started is as easy as falling off a bike - and Drake Rodriguez is the
guy to talk to about that. He'll get you familiar with the mission system and
get you to perform all sorts of quests for him - enter - the Drake Trials. |
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Meet Drake Rodriguez.
Drake has a problem. In fact - he has multiple problems, and has obtained some
paperwork that you have signed allowing him to have you solve them for him. The
Drake Tests do have some nice rewards though, so it might be a good idea to succumb
to his tests as your first step in the Shadowlands.
In order for you to be able to do the quests, you will need to be below level
50, since Drake can be found in the Jobe Backyard on the high pillar connected
to the main backyard by a floating energy bridge.
Drake has a number of quests he wants you to perform, all while he tracks your
progress with a certain bracer of his.. |
The first time you talk to Drake, he will tell you about what he needs. In case
you didn't start out in Jobe but travelled here later and never received the Bracer
of Jobe, Drake will happily give you the one he's holding and send you on your
way to perform a couple of tasks. There are five of them and an additional little
fringe quest, a final test if you wish to call it that. The five basic tests are:
Test of Strength
Test of Agility and Stamina
Test of Sense
Test of Psychic
Test of Intelligence
Each of the tests will yield you a specific reward, and as some of the rewards
are quite neat we advice towards completing the quests. Worth noting about these
quests is that the XP gained from them escalates as your level increases - the
cap for XP is at 600 though. We did these quests at level 1 (hence the rather
small XP/credits reward). Its advisable that you level to around level 5 before
doing these tests, since it involves some rather hard targets for newly arrived
players. Once you have accepted to do the quest though, Drake will, with a slap
on your back, send you on your way on your first test... the test of strength.
Test of Strength
The test of Strength is quite straightforward. It requires you to kill three creatures
in the backyard, a Deceitful Weaver, a Shining Coiler and a Beit Gras. You will
have 30 minutes at your disposal to dispose of each of the creatures.
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To measure your strength, Drake Rodriguez
wants you to defeat three creatures...
Credits: 48 - Exp: 16
Bracer of Strength |
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The first two are quite easy, even at level 1 - the Beit Gras however is a tough
customer. You might want to level to level 2 or 3 before taking these on, unless
you have gotten yourself some neat equipment (such as the Jobe
Backyard Weapons). Once completed, return to Rodriguez to receive your
reward, a Bracer of Strength that gives you +2 Strength and 5 HP.
Test of Agility and Stamina
The next quest involves putting on tracking bugs on some of the denizens of the
backyard. You will need to find yourself a Hungry Predator, a Lurking Chimera
and a Pond Dryad.
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To measure your agility and stamina,
Drake Rodriguez wants you to register...
Credits: 48 - Exp: 16
Tattoo of Inner Peace |
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This quest requires you to have some speed, as you will only have 3 minutes to
get the tracking bug on each creature. To make things simpler though, the targets
you need are far from rare and you can find the Predators and Chimeras easily.
The Pond Dryad you can find down at the small swamp area of the backyard. Simply
pick up the tracking device and rightclick it on your targets and you will have
completed the quest and need to return to Rodriguez for your reward. Depending
on your profession, this reward will vary a bit - Shades will get a Tattoo of
Inner Peace, traders will get a smart little utility belt, and most professions
will recieve an Adventure Shirt.
Test of Sense
In the test of sense, Drake needs you to find a Shadowleet.
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To measure your sense,
Rodriguez needs you to find a Shadowleet.. Whatever that is...
Credits: 48 - Exp: 16
Nano Crystal (Overview of Nascence) |
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The Shadowleets are an interesting species indeed. Hidden from
normal view, they're not easily found at all.
You will need to pull down your actions-menu (CTRL-2) and find the "Search"
icon in there in order to scout the surrounding areas for one of the Shadowleets.
The best place to find the shadowleets is around the area where the guards are.
Set your sights for the huge tree there and... |
...click like you've never clicked before. Go around it and hunt down the Shadowleet.
You will get a message saying "Shadowleet appears..." if you find one,
and as you can see from the picture, it might be a good idea not to bother these
deadly predators or they will nibble your bum into extinction. Your reward for
finding the Shadowleet is a nanomap over Jobe and Nascence, very practical indeed.
If you're above level 50, or happen to fail, or simply don't want to complete the
tests, you can obtain this map later on by simply killing the Nascence Geo-Survey
dogs out in the wilds. They will drop the map in most cases.
Test of Psychic
The next test, the Test of Psychic, is an arduous one indeed. Instead of getting
the quest from Drake himself, he will instruct you to find two encampments - an
Unredeemed agent has set up camp in the caverns of the west side of the big hill
where you found the Shadowleet. Also, the Redeemed has sent out one of their Rangers
to the east side, in a cove nearby.
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Talk to Celeth-El, the Crystal Guardian...
Talk to El-Domo, the Forest Ranger...
Credits: 48 - Exp: 16
Ring of Enhanced Psychic |
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To complete the quest, you will need to decide which one of these
you want to help out. Choices choices... Either you get to help the shady dark
knight character with a Darth Vader complex, or you get to help the mad blue glowing
treehugging hippie. Joy oh joy.
If you should be unable to find these in their cave/grove, odds are they're dead
and will respawn soon enough, so hang around for a little and they'll pop back
within 20 minutes.
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If you intend on helping out Celeth-El, it might be a good idea to remember his
location as you can head here later on and have him 'bless' the bracer you're
wearing in his very own special little way transforming it to a Scourged Bracer
of Jobe, which has a few extra bonuses.
Oh well, lets get a move on, shall we.. Starting with the redeemed, El-Domo the
Forest Ranger wants you to help him find a Young Silvertail to bring him to his
mother.
Celeth-El on the other hand wants you to snuff a creature called the Silvertail
Mare. Its up to you to shape your future. Keep in mind that you will only be able
to do one of these quests, and they do yield faction, which is easy enough to
gain but really slow to lose. Anyone on a diet will know what we're talking about
here.
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The Silvertail Mare you can find just outside the Unredeemed
cavern, standing there, oblivious of what's to come. Oh well, there's good meat
on those things and you are a bit hungry, aren't you?
If you don't exactly feel like killing the Mare for just wanting to look out for
its young, you will want to seek out the Young Silvertail that resides in the
area southwest of the grove where El-Domo resides.
El-Domo will hand you a rag, with the scent of the Young Silvertails mother on
it, which you use on the Young Silvertail. This will allow the young one to track
down his mother and reunites them in peace. Or at least until the next agent for
the Redeemed decides to make mincemeat of the Silvertail. |
Once you are done with this quest you will get a Ring of Enhanced Psychic, which
adds a mighty 10 to your nanoresist skill. You will get this once you've returned
to Drake Rodriguez.
Test of Intelligence
The next test is going to test your intelligence. Drake needs you to deliver some
supplies to a nearby fellow scientist, named Sarah Willis.
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Deliver supplies to Sarah
Willis...
Credits: 48 - Exp: 16
Bonfire Kit |
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Before you go out hunting down the poor lass, you should be aware
of that she has company.
Really really mean company in fact. The company is called Disrupting Imp, and
will need to be distracted in order for you to complete the quest. The cave in
which she resides is to the east of where you found Celeth-El, the crystal Guardian
at where some Chimeras and Predators are.
Just outside the cave, you will be able to see another scientist - Brad Willis.
Brad will help you distract the imp if you talk to him, so do that unless you
happen to be immune to dying. He'll run into the cave and start wrestling the
Imp and give you enough time to have a little chat with Sarah and give her the
supplies Drake sent you out to deliver. |
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Once you return to Drake again, you'll get the Bonfire Kit, a nifty little item
with 50 charges which will allow you to recharge your health and nano while out
in the 'lands.
The Final Test
Now you're all done! Or so says Drake anyway, but he isn't telling you the whole
truth... There is one final part of the quest, and a dangerous one at that.
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These are hecklers. You will come to hate them soon enough so
why not start in the backyard, eh? You can find them on the brink of the backyards,
looking like rocks.
These are very hard buggers, we recommend you level to around level 10 in order
to take these on - also, you will need to find a specific one, called a Heckler
of Evolution. Once you have killed the Heckler of Evolution, open up its loot-window
and you will notice a Delicate Metal Device.
Take this item back to Drake and he'll finally spill the beans and tell you what
he's really after. He will also give you a very nice backpack called a "Smart
Backpack" which requires 10 intelligence to wear, and will give you a very
nice light-source to strut around in.
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Last updated 08.December 2003
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