Sightseeing down south

I apologize for the recent slowdown in posts. I've had a lot of real-life distractions cutting into my AC time, including a persistently unreliable internet connection. I have, however, been up to things.

The Undead Mechanic quest led me to Lin, a mountain town in the south of the Sho lands. I always thought it had pretty good design; Nestled in a valley with large mountains on either side, it feels secluded and homey. Buildings stand not only on the floor of the valley, but atop the mountains and terraces. One thing I'd forgotten is that the local bartender is chattier than most: a bunch of rumors are sitting there, and many of them look worth following up on. First things first, though. Another alloy piece is hidden in here:

Saadia's Retreat

If my Magic Resist wasn't up to snuff, this dungeon would be hellish. I mean, just look at that text window! It was like that from the moment I portalled in. The mosswarts in here do more than just debuff, too. Fortunately I'm a total badass and plow through them like a lawnmower, collecting a ludicrous number of Swamp Stones along the way. If I were lower level, though, it wouldn't have been so much fun. Here I am standing at the eye of a storm of steel:

Aside from the sheer number of mossies, the dungeon poses little challenge, but I give props for the effort put into aesthetic design, including a highly vertical layout and an elegant but understated throne room. Can you imagine this design with 100+ level enemies? I shudder to think.

A Small Ruin

A generically-named dungeon that I expected to be another place full of outdated spawns, but which is actually comparable to the above-ground area. Drudge Lurkers, Granite Golems, and a lever puzzle guard a runed chest. The room in the above screen was full of particle effects, for no readily discernable reason. Short and simple, but satisfying enough for its length.

Rocky Crypt

Sorry about the lame pic, but I didn't stick around here long. I was drawn by rumors that it was packed with golems, which are some of my favorite mobs to hunt. (Motes, hearts, not overly tough but a challenge -- what's not to like?) Well, it was, but unfortunately among them were Iron Golems, which are way out of my league. I get killed in short order, make a quick corpse run to get my items back, then decide to leave this for later.

Incidentally, I don't know what that thing in the screenshot is. It's neither solid nor clickable. It's sitting right on top of the portal drop, the green arrow oriented in the direction that you're standing, so I assume it's some  debug-mode thing for developers that someone forget to make invisible.

Golem Burial Grounds

This was more like it. Lots of 60-80ish golems in a medium-sized but easily navigable dungeon. Some nice-looking rooms, too. What sticks out most in my mind, however, are these:

Yes, there's an enemy there. It's a Mist Golem, made of nearly-transparent particle effects and hard to spot without the radar. They pose a bit of a problem since my sticks do jack to them, luckily they are not so invulnerable to my frost handwraps.

I have little to say about the dungeon, although I did enjoy it. Lots of Golems, Runed Chest at the end, fun times. Apparently it was a popular location to grind for motes in earlier days. I was tempted to stay a while and test that out, but I'm not really the grinding type.

Thieves' Galleries

The lore here is that someone pulled an art heist and stuck the pictures in here, then got chased out by a crew of Banderlings. It's a nice little dungeon, but the whole "dungeon/gallery" thing's been done before in the Dungeon Gallery Tower. A brief and linear crawl culminates in a runed chest. Not bad, but nothing great either.

In addition to the dungeons, Lin has a lot of overworld sites worth a visit. Not only are they aesthetically appealing, but they often hold runed chests. Here's the so-called "Dead Cave", with it's Lich Lord inhabitants:

The training camps northeast of town:

The "Old Keep" (Known as the "Lin Lich Tower" before the Liches were replaced with Dark Revenents),

The Golem Spire, which I gave a pass after getting a taste of the guards:

An Empyrean shrine of unknown purpose, complete with Runed Chest (not shown: Dark Leech, Dark Revenants, and Granite Golem respawning unnaturally fast):

Last but not least, there's the Zefir cave, home to the Minor Sparking Stone, some lore documents, and a bunch of Zefirs. I raid the place, but leave the loot. Minor Atlans are pretty much useless unless you need  Writs of Refuge, which I don't.

And that's how is was. A nice week. Some fresh air, some Golem-bashing... Lin is a ideal vacation spot for the discerning Derethian adventurer. Current stats: