Dungeons & Dragons Online Beta Impressions

The folks at GamerGod are offering up some first impressions of Turbine's Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach, after spending some time in the MMORPG's beta test. An excerpt:
I walked down the dock, passing a few players along the way, and met my first NPC on dry land, a Warforged by the name of Guard Rusticello. The dialogue was humourous and well written; it seems that Guard Rusticello was under the impression that quests were to be done in order to gain experience to become more powerful. Indeed, this was the Dungeons and Dragons I remembered. He directed me to the tavern behind him, the Rook's Gambit.

Entering the tavern, I was greeted by an excellent relaxing tune that soothed the nerves after a long trip through the treacherous waters of character generation. The coloring was just about right for a dimly lit yet welcoming tavern, and while the bartender wasn't generous enough to offer a beer to a penniless adventurer, he did direct me to Euphonia Teles, a patron in the rear of the tavern who had an obstacle course for me to complete. Being a stalwart adventurer, I gladly accepted her quest. The door right behind her would take me to the gauntlet she had created to test adventurers such as myself.