EverQuest Franchise Holiday Contest!

SOE and ZAM team up to give the community some awesome prizes!

UPDATE: Winners have been announced!


Thank you everyone for your entries! It's definitely been a trip down memory lane reading so many wonderful stories. The contest has now ended and we'll be finalizing the list of all qualified names before randomly selecting winners in a blind drawing.

Winners will be announced by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Tuesday, December 31, 2013. Winners will also be notified via Private Messaging (PMs) on ZAM that they have won. We will update this article and post a new one as well informing everyone of the results!


This holiday season, Sony Online Entertainment and ZAM want to share the holiday spirit with the community with an epic contest! It doesn't matter if you play EverQuest, EverQuest II or want to dive into EverQuest Next Landmark, there is something for all Norrathians here. We have one grand prize and three Station Cash prizes from SOE, as well as a bonus for ten lucky people from ZAM!

  • GRAND PRIZE: One winner will receive codes to the collector's editions of the most recent EverQuest and EverQuest II expansions, Call of the Forsaken and Tears of Veeshan (a $90 value each), as well as a code for the EverQuest Next Landmark Trailblazer Founder's Pack (a $100 value; total prize value of $280)
  • Three more winners will each receive one $10 Station Cash code (worth 1000 SC)
  • Ten more winners will each receive three months premium on ZAM

Continue after the jump for details on how this contest will work!


How to Enter

  • Log in to your ZAM account (registering is free!)
  • Post a comment at least 3-5 sentences long (minimum) in the comments section of this article
  • The comment should focus on your favorite location in Norrath, in any EverQuest franchise title. Why is it your favorite place? Did something fun happen to you or your guild there? Do you just love the environment or lore of the location? Are you new to Norrath, but want to talk about a location you are excited to visit in-game?
  • You can supplement your comment by linking to a video or picture of this location! It's not required and won't affect your entry into the contest, but it's a lot more fun to share!
  • Deadline for entries is 11:59pm Pacific Time on Friday, December 27, 2013... that means you have one week to enter!
  • Only one entry per person, please!

Due to the amount of entries we have, comments may take a bit of extra time to load... patience, grasshopper!

How We Judge

  • As long as your entry meets the contest guidelines above, you will be entered into a random blind drawing!
  • Winners will be announced by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Tuesday, December 31, 2013
  • Codes for the Grand Prize and Station Cash will be sent to the appropriate winners via private message on ZAM by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Tuesday, December 31, 2013
  • Winners of the three months of premium on ZAM will have it added to their account and will be notified of their win via private message on ZAM. This has to be done manually, so there may be additional delay.

Obligatory Information

  • No purchase necessary, but you need to register for a free account with ZAM if you haven't yet
  • You must have an account with SOE to be able to redeem the codes. They will not work for PSS1 account holders.
  • We don't care which country you're in as long as you have an SOE account
  • The contest begins whenever this article goes live on Friday, December 20, 2013 and ends at 11:59pm Pacific Time on Friday, December 27, 2013
  • One entry per person
  • ZAM staff and their immediate family are not eligible. Sorry, hubby!
  • SOE employees and their immediate family are not eligible. Sorry, Roshen!

That's everything! You can enter the contest for yourself, or to try and win an awesome gift for a friend or loved one -- either way, we can't wait to read everyone's stories!


Disclaimer: I'm aware that the picture above doesn't reflect the recent EverQuest and EverQuest II expansions... what it does reflect is my favorite locations in those games! =)

 Ann "Cyliena" Hosler, Managing Editor

Follow me on Twitter: @Cyliena

Comments

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A tie to say the least
# Dec 27 2013 at 7:10 AM Rating: Decent
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68 posts
My favorite location within Norrath is a splitting tie between the Kurn's Tower and the Great Divide. I was infamous for always going to level in the Great Divide when I could and running around to find giants, I would hunt with guildies, kite them solo, or even just get a group together and mentor them outside their group while killing there. The giants gave me a number of fun experiences, plus, the Great Divide was one of the only places I remember being literally so huge you could lose aggro on a train without zoning out. The Thurgadin faction also came in handy when making the gate potions for melee and hybrid classes. Kurn's Tower, on the other hand, is a zone I grew to love because of my preference to hybrid classes, it was great for Shadowknights and Paladins(Paladin being my main). I would immediately take any toons right out of the tutorial and level them in Kurn's until I couldn't anymore. Being highly active in the Seeds of Destruction era and SoD raids, I was thrilled to find out about a revamped version of Kurn's in the 80s, I occasionally stop in there for the AA experience from time to time, because of the huge undead numbers in the zone, plus I enjoyed the raid content of the Field of Scale part of SoD being highly active in the raids at the time. So it is easily split between Kurn's and the Great Divide, an overall winner might be Kurn's, but only because there's two of them. The closest thing in recent expansions that has the thrill of either of these two zones would have to be the Veil of Alaris Beast's Domain, but the classics win it out.
____________________________
"Some claim they wish to be enlightened or wish to experience Zen. This is an absurdity, you do not 'become' enlightened or 'experience' Zen. If you wish to be enlightened, BE." - Unknown
Favorite places
# Dec 27 2013 at 6:56 AM Rating: Decent
Scholar
22 posts
As someone who has played EQ 1 almost from day one (on and off during the years) it is hard to pick just one favorite place. I have so many delightful memories attached to the game! Paludal Caverns was a joy to level lowbies in. LDON dungeons were a whole new ball game. I particularly enjoyed the mistmoore choices in the lesser fay. And running from the unicorns to get to the zone entrance!

All in all, EQ 1 was a wonderful game for so long that I often reminisce about the times and experiences I had, and the friends that I met along the way. It is impossible for me to pick just one area or zone for me to call my favorite. Thank you SoE, for so many wonderful memories!

My favorite zone
# Dec 27 2013 at 6:40 AM Rating: Decent
Where do I begin? Having bought the game for a friend in Aug. '99 and watching over their shoulder for a couple weeks I broke down and bought a PC so I could get my own account. Convincing several other friends to play wasn't hard after showing them this new marvel.

I'd have to say that I spent much time in Blackburrow with friends and it remains as a huge favorite. At the time the mystic and danger about the place was incredible. Not knowing how deep it was, the hidden turns and the sheer amount of baddies was awesome enough but by far the most fun and terror were the gnoll trains!

It was always a blast when someone would "yell" TRAIN TO ZONE! in big red letters and all hell would break loose. Instantly the players would move to get out of the top level and soon it would be a knot (usually at the Qeynos exit) of players and gnolls. Some fighting, some fleeing, most not knowing what just happened.

After a few drubbings I learned to store basic armor, a torch and a weapon so I could return to find my corpse. But then came the day (or was it night?) I found I could scale the wall near the door that led down to BB proper. It was great to sit there when the trains roared through, watching the pandemonium, deciding if I was safe enough or could risk dropping down to rescue someone. The added benefit was looting dead gnolls while others sat outside the zone healing, etc. lol.

More great places to gether came along down the road (pulling giants at night in Rathe!) but I will always have a softspot for Blackburrow.
How do you choose just one...
# Dec 26 2013 at 11:22 PM Rating: Decent
I have many favorite zones that I have played in over the years, but I would have to say one of my most memorable is the city of Kelethin in EQ1. As a Woodelf Bard it was my starting city, I remember seeing so many new bards run off the platforms and fall to their deaths and have many memories of doing the same myself. Even though I had run every bridge and platform I still get lost running around Kelethin even to this day. I also loved Shar'Vahl when it first came out.
First time on Norrath
# Dec 26 2013 at 10:44 PM Rating: Decent
27 posts
My all time favorite zone created a sense of awe in me that kept me coming back for more. It is a simple zone with no epic battles or grand stories to be told, but the feeling of adventures to come that it inspired is what placed it at the top of my list. Greater Faydark of Everquest II. I started when they introduced the Fae and so I made one to check it out. The little starting area felt so big, I had no idea the scope of how big the game was. When I emerged out the tunnel and witnessed the vastness of this starting zone I was a little awestruck. The story of how the orcs when posioning the land and how it flowed from begining to end made me feel as though I truly was the Champion of the Forest. The stroy of the dwarven chain mail quickly imbedded a deep connection to the lore. I loved the scenery most of all, from the massive trees to the small ponds. The City of Kelethin suspend in the air like the world's greatest tree fort. It left a lasting impression on me that eventually led me truly appreciate and love the world of Norrath and its inhabitants. Still to this day I enjoy running through Greater Faydark and going through those same experinces over again.
Everquest: Commonlands Cliffs
# Dec 26 2013 at 10:39 PM Rating: Decent
Our guild on Cazic-Thule used the cliffs for guild meetings and RP events after "graduating" from the Freeport Sewers. To this day, I have never encountered a more ideal area (in EQ or EQ2) for player-developed fun and RP! The view, the seclusion, games like cliff jumping and Flame Bolt shooting - all contributed to a most magical place to experience the MMO *and* the RPG of a ground-breaking game of its time!

The friendships and camaraderie forged on those cliffs would last through multiple leadership changes and transcend gaming worlds. But it all started on those cliffs almost ten years ago, continuing in some fashion up to the present day. Long live Draconis!
Best time in EQ ever.
# Dec 26 2013 at 8:28 PM Rating: Decent
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51 posts
Back in early 2000 I was playing on the Tholuxe server. It was pretty new and I think I was level 18 at the time. I was in a group in West Commonlands at the bandit camp. I was in a guild called Vile Alliance and I was grouped with mostly guildies and I think one PUG. Our enchanter was pulling and they ran off all of a sudden away from the camp. Suddenly we got an incoming message in group saying "Incoming a werewolf." We all laughed because we figured they were just messing around but all of a sudden I was dead. I think the group wiped pretty quick and we all ran back and regrouped. The enchanter said they thought we could handle the werewolf even though it was like level 30 or whatever. I don't know why it hit me as so funny but it was probably the hardest I've ever laughed while playing EQ.
Everquest -- Felwith
# Dec 26 2013 at 8:27 PM Rating: Decent
Even though I play EQ2 these days, my favorite zone is still Felwithe in EQ1. It was/is just so beautiful. I played it on my old Mac which can no longer go on the internet so I am playing EQ2 now. But I really wish we could still enter Felwithe as it was then. Such beautiful colors and I just loved the pool.
crypt of decay
# Dec 26 2013 at 7:27 PM Rating: Decent
My favorite zone in everquest is crypt of decay. because of the limited space you have which makes it easier to find and kill other players and you can taunt them to come in the zone so u have the jump on them. its the perfect place to pvp for 60 and up. like one time I was on my frog sk wodash which is in knights of shadowhawk and stabhimlots and retroshot were in there with me and we called out north star avengers and just whipped em out in like a minute was beautiful except they were all like 1 pointers which isn't suprising
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTeEeGl4fQs
Favorite Everquest Location
# Dec 26 2013 at 7:15 PM Rating: Decent
In EQ1 I loved the Rathe Mountains. I spent a crazy amount of time grinding away to catch up to friends who started before I did. As an Ogre SK it was like a 2nd home just off the Feerrott and there was something fun about taking on giants with large coin purses.

In EQ2 I loved soloing in the Kingdom of the Sky, particularly the island with the beholders. It had decent collection items, harvest nodes that seemed to provide more than their fair share of rares and best of all, a bunch of soloable nameds that a grubby half elf guardian could bash away on in a long circular trek that filled time profitably between raids
West Karana
# Dec 26 2013 at 6:22 PM Rating: Decent
My favorite zone has always been West Karana. My first character was a Human so I started in Qeynos. I took me a couple weeks of playing before I ventured over to West Karana and I just loved the zone. I remember sitting there killing wolves and cats thinking how easy it was to kill them. The next thing I knew I was dead. My first run in with a big nasty Hill Giant. Back then, I had no maps of the zones so I didn't realize how large the zone was. It took me weeks of hunting before I ran into the zoneline, on accident. I met a lot of nice people grouping there and killing bandits. Some of the people we formed a guild with and hunted together for years.
Greater Faydark and Kelethin
# Dec 26 2013 at 5:31 PM Rating: Decent
Greater Faydark in Everquest 2, especially the Kelethin area: I love this zone, I like the big trees, the mushrooms, the logs, they feel so big and I feel so small. The most memorable view was when I first left the valley from the Nursery and saw Kelethin. Gliding was introduced here and it added a different view and flow to the multiple levels there. And I didn't go splat that much anymore Smiley: smile Now it's great to fly through it, up and down.
Rescue at Befallen
# Dec 26 2013 at 5:03 PM Rating: Decent
Scholar
26 posts
Befallen will always hold a place in my heart. 14 or so years ago when Lions of the Heart was a brand new guild with many low level players we had an emergency. One of our members had fallen through a hole to the lowest level of Befallen and could not retrieve his corpse to get his gear. A call went out to all guild members and we all met up at Befallen to rescue our guild mates gear. It was a heart stopping fight but we eventually cleared the area around the corpse and our guild mate was able to get to his gear. In todays age of level 100 toons it is an event that seems insignificant now but it was a heroic endeavor back in the day.
____________________________
Guild leader of Lions of the Heart for the past 15 years. New and returning players along with veterans are always welcome to join us on Xegony. See our ad in the recruitment forum! https://forums.station.sony.com/eq/...aiding-family-friendly-xegony-druzzil.217197/

One of my favorite places on Norrath
# Dec 26 2013 at 4:39 PM Rating: Decent
Having played since 2000, met so many awesome people, had so much fun, and spent countless hours in both EQ and EQ2 as both a player and a guide, it's difficult to choose just one place as my favorite. Since I have to pick just one, I've decided to go with the top of the three top platform on the big island in the middle of Lake Rathe in EQ, the one with the flames and runes. The graphics are dated now, but I still remember how pretty I though the flames and runes were the first time I saw them. It felt like it was a place full of arcane magic with an incredible view of the water and sky. This is where my husband first proposed to me in game before we'd met in real life. He'd planned it out, brought a couple friends to keep the aviaks at bay and bought me a "Silver Engagement Ring". He proposed in guild chat and there was much merry making afterwards. We've been together ever since. Almost 14 years later we're happily married in real life with four kids. Here's the screenies I took that day. :o)
Favorite EQ Location
# Dec 26 2013 at 4:24 PM Rating: Decent
My favorite spot in EQ is Fungus Grove (FG). In 2004, I met this cute vah shir beastlord and our favorite spot to duo was FG. We spent many a night killing all the buggies in the area, talking and developing an awesome friendship. One night I noticed my vah shir friend was acting funny so being the good friend I was I ask what was wrong. After a bit of prodding and to my delight, I got the answer. She was in love with me and hoped I felt the same. Now 9 years later we are happily married with a mortgage and 2 dogs. EQ and FG will always be special to me. I met the love of my life there.
Favorite EQ franchise location
# Dec 26 2013 at 4:15 PM Rating: Decent
My favorite location would have to be The Commonlands in EQ2. It was the first non city zone I came across when I began playing with my cousin back in '05. When I hit the Commonlands it seemed like a whole new world was opening up. I remember playing my first character, a Guardian, and feeling out the differences between EQ and this new, but familiar title. I went through the motions of hunting small mobs right outside the city before moving on to packs of Orcs and then beyond to the lions, elephants and undead. The zone was huge and had such a varied selection of mobs that you forgot it was just one zone, much like EQ feels. Leveling was slower back then so you were there quite a while. Good thing it has a fantastic background track. Sometimes I'll load it up in YouTube and be brought back to that time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlDPAnoyOFo

In essence, The Commonlands was the first impression to an MMO I spent the next few years exclusively playing and still play to this day. I'll never forget those first moments.
Anxiously awaiting the dawn of Landmark - Shadowsong
# Dec 26 2013 at 4:01 PM Rating: Decent
My favorite Everquest 2 location has to be the old trial of the isle area during launch.... Now of course this area no longer exist in game but the found memories of me and my friends just starting the game and the hustle and bustle of all the new faces forced to go through this small tutorial area... The game was much different at launch, almost everything from those old days are now gone... save for the friends and great memories we made playing this wonderful game for almost a decade... I hope to continue to play this amazing franchise for another ten years... the promise of this new norrath honestly keeps me awake at night longing to see the armies and mythic heroes of norrathian history march like a flood into the future and leave their mark on this world...
Anxiously awaiting the dawn of Landmark - Shadowsog
West Commonlands
# Dec 26 2013 at 3:51 PM Rating: Decent
Scholar
46 posts
The best time I ever had in EQ was in 1999 as a low level ranger running around west commonlands killing (and often being killed by) willowisps, then running to north karana with the greater lightstones to make 9 plat each and XP from the quest. That 9 plat was untold riches to me at the time, and allowed me to buy some great magic stuff like jagged bands, a combine long sword etc. I remember being so sad when I got to the level I couldnt make XP's from wisps anymore and had to move on.
My Fav
# Dec 26 2013 at 3:50 PM Rating: Decent
One of my favortie locations in Everquest was the original Cazic-Thule zone. During my adventures in CT there were a couple changes, Rubicite armor was replaced with Ravenscale and items looted by players would appear in the chat log. The items looted messages was nice because people couldn't loot a named mobs rare item and say the common item dropped, and it would also set a standard for all future MMOs. My Favorite camps were Avatar of Fear, the temple, and the gorillas.
Favorite location
# Dec 26 2013 at 3:16 PM Rating: Good
It's very difficult to pick one specific place. My favorite expansion was Velious. I still remember going to Kael on a raid with my guild at the time, wiping deep in the zone. Everyone then grabbed what spare equipment they had in the bank, supplemented it all with mage summoned armor, and we made our way back to our corpses to regroup and finish off the raid. I remember spending a huge amount of time in various zones in Velious working on my shawl.
____________________________
Graeme Faelban, 125 Barbarian Shaman, Erollisi Marr
<Phoenix Ascending>
Good to be back
# Dec 26 2013 at 2:54 PM Rating: Decent

When I first started this game back in 1999, I was still in grade school, This game took me to some far away places, to see many dragons, elves, bixies, lizards, grunts and gnolls of all kinds. But when Velious was released it took that imagination to a whole new level for me. The introduction of far off lands were giants can rule the land but forced to defend it against the fierce dragons that dwell in the mountain tops Which is why breaking into the Temple of Veeshan is a moment ill remember forever. Little yellow dragons, giant red dragons rushing into our raid force and crushing us all within seconds. Only to have to try for hours upon hours to just break into the magical dungeon.

The best adventurous have only nearly begun though. With the upgraded release of a new level 100 Temple of Veeshan, I have been giving the privilege to lead some of Zek's finest back into this dungeon. We started small and took only a handful of people into the mighty temple to slay only but one dragon; Dagarn. After many weeks of growing and farming this beast Dagarn, we have been fortunate enough to improve in numbers and also in gear quality to begin to tackle and slay more dragons. No Longer do we fear the ugly slimy face that is Koi Doken and no longer do we run in fear from the blind of Sevalak. Even when Feshlak tries to tie us down and lock us up in his crystals we manage to find a way to escape and defeat his powers.

Soon we will take on the mighty Vulak as he is one of the few remaining dragons left standing within the temple. And then the temple will finally be ours once again!


Fishoor Of`Bananas <Wudan>
www.WudanNext.com
Serpents Spine
# Dec 26 2013 at 2:21 PM Rating: Decent
Avatar
7 posts
My Favorite place to play in Everquest is the Serpents Spine. I like all the zones in this expansion and really enjoy the variation between the zones.I have not decided where my favorite place is. I love the graphics of Everquest 2 but prefer the game play and content in Everquest. It seems like in the 7 years I have been playing, I always find new zones in the older worlds that I have never been to. I do not have any toons maxed out yet to play the newer expansions because I enjoy the other zones to much. I guess I have to call myself an everquest addict. I can not go without it and even though I play other games I still come back to Everquest after just playing the others for a short time.
Greater Faydark
# Dec 26 2013 at 1:35 PM Rating: Decent
6 posts
I can't really decide on one location either, but I'm going with gfay because as a High Elf Paladin, this is where I first came into the world of Norrath (after wandering out of Felwithe of course!) Back then (early 2001) there were no Luclin character models, no maps, definitely no mercs, no PoK, no custom UI's, no AA's, no Origin AA. I remember as I leveled up making my way to Orc Hill, and then eventually into Crushbone. I can't tell you how many times I would gather up all my loot and run to Kelethin to empty my bags, and go back to hunt some more. I remember my lofty goal of hitting level 9 so I could get my first set of spells! I was so proud of myself! Every so often I would run to BB for the orc belt/orc pad turn-in quest. Now whenever I am in the zone it's completely empty. For me this is where I found my first guild, made my first EQ friends, and my journey of many, many years began.
Echoes of Faydwer
# Dec 26 2013 at 1:12 PM Rating: Decent
My favorite is Greater Faydark in Everquest 2. Echoes of Faydwer is my favorite expansion. I like the scenery, music, lore, fae and arasi, etc. for those zones, especially the music near sapling spur outpost. I remember hearing that music on the everquest 2 website when Echoes of Faydwer was first announced.
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