Ok, a lot of time was spent setting up good end quests and a fine raid. However, I think some issues exists that will continue to creep into DDO end game play and cause longevity problems. I don't really think the design staff has a complete grasp on why the majority of people ultimately quest end game in DDO. Sure, there is fun in putting a group together and going out and successfully defeating a quest or raid. However, unless there is new content on a monthly or bimonthly basis, this reward is not likely to hold peoples interest too long. Just how many times can you run new invasion before the group questing there becomes dry.

This lack of content has be an issue for a long time, however, people in the past still log and still play. So what were they doing? For many the answer is loot. Loot is the reason a quest like monestary with up to seven loot pulls and a completion time under 15 minutes (even solo) was so popular pre Mod 9. So, the question is, what quest will be the new Monestary of Mod 9. The answer, I predict ironically for a lot of people will be, ..... Monestary.

Why monestary? Simple, the loot in the new end game content is actually worth less than that in old refuge quests. Especially when you consider the time necessary to obtain it. You see, in the refuge quest, things like +2 tomes drop however, this is not the only issue. Items drop that can be auctioned, items like +5 resistance cloaks or +15 hafling race required disable traps gloves. These are capped bonus items that drop for 15 level or lower toons. This is why people in the know often solo or group run refuge quests quite often.

In the new content the loot is higher level, but since the highest bonus to items really stopped at 15th level or so, you end up with an item like +15 disable trap gloves with +3 bluff, or something similar. Sure its a +15 item but the minimum level on it is 17. This means the item is worth much less at auction than an item with say just a +15 disable on it. Couple this with the fact that quest take perhaps twice as long to run in the battlefield as refuge and even the higher vendor value of items loose their luster. (For example, I can hit the chests in Soami Garden, run the Monastery, then hit the chests in Soami again, and finally grab my end reward. All of this in about 35 minutes or less and I will nab up to 12 chests and an end reward. Nothing compares in the new content). Other good loot quests include vale quests on hard or elite.

Now, the new raid is well made too, however, much of the end loot is either non functioning or does not stack with existing items and is on its own of poorer bonus quality than lower level loot. Perhaps we have not unlocked all of the end loot potential, however, if this really is the ultimate case, then this raid will ultimately die on the vine. Furthermore, the new area in general will slowly die off as more people become experienced in better places to gather loot.

You already see this style starting to creep into the play of some very experienced players. Soon it will spread to the masses. Rewards are why people play in the long run. I do not know if the retention of players at end game is in Turbines business model. If it is and they cannot find a way to incorporate decent rewards in a timely way, then I am afraid folks will ultimate stop playing.