Asheron's Call 2: Legions Interview

RPG Vault has published a three-page interview with Turbine's Eric Heimburg, in which the producer talks at length about their Asheron's Call 2: Legions expansion pack. A snippet:
Q: In summary, what is the Hero system, and how does it work? What kinds of new abilities, skills, combat tactics and other rewards will it offer?

A: Players can become heroes at level 45, and the Hero System is what lets players advance beyond level 50. After they become Heroes of Dereth, they can reach ever higher levels - up to around level 90 with the content available in Legions.

The game contained an earlier version of the Hero System before Legions shipped, so most of our avid players are already Heroes. But the new "Hero 2.0" system changes every aspect of high-level play. It introduces Hero Credits which allow players to buy new Hero Skills, as well as Hero Perks which permanently affect how the character behaves. This is a very cool new dynamic that we're really proud of. There are over 150 Hero Perks, providing everything from extra pack space to improved accuracy, enhanced health regeneration and much more.

There are many other changes in the new Hero System, but one we're particularly excited about is our new chain combo system. By using their individual skills cooperatively in a certain order, a group of three or more players can enact powerful special effects that can weaken monsters and even cause them to yield more experience. However, it's not quite that easy. The exact order needed for these combos is hidden - players will have to discover the hundreds of different combos by using clues that are built into the game.