Kurn's Lobby

The foyer of Kurn's Tower is mostly Iksar (Lizzid peeple). Mostly. Groups pulling from the large room of undead skeletons, or moving out of the way as someone jumps down from one of the upper floors preparing for a "train" as they run to the right, are two of the most common sights a player will encounter here.

Every now and then, someone from the Old World will appear, hoping to take advantage of one of the best leveling areas in the game. For "holy" classes like Paladins and Clerics, this tower is fish in a barrel. However, the path to get here is anything but easy, especially from the "good" outpost of Fironia Vie (named after the iconic female High Elf on the game covers).

Although there were only a few real safe areas of Kurn's Tower, this was as good as any, and was the easiest place for players to dip their toes in what felt like a vertical labyrinth of the undead. The exit was only a few steps away, and there were usually others who could assist. As players became more comfortable, they could begin pulling from larger rooms, or even start clearing and exploring on their own. Unfortunately, the top of the tower provided little in the way of memorable NPCs. For a game that holds so many notorious and memorable enemies and mob types, this location felt lacking. A few famous ones - most notably for their loot - populated the lower areas and others had specific quest items worth achieving, but overall the zone was missing a singular antagonist.

The only point I could think that advocates for this type of choice is that it would end up creating a boss rush mentality for the zone. This same type of enemy encounter design is present in places like The Estate of Unrest, and even Blackburrow. Regardless, the place is a legend amongst veteran players and an intimidating presence to newer ones who are just beginning their own first steps - steps that are guaranteed to have them sitting against this wall at some point.