Last week, IGN and Gamespy had the rare privilege of heading out to Mythic to get our hands on the latest version of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning and to go head-to-head in a fight between the forces of Order and Chaos. In keeping with the different personalities of our networks (and the hygiene habits of our editors), we of course choose the refined, graceful High Elves. Gamespy opted for the loathsome, baby-kicking Dark Elves. Keep in mind that they got first pick. (You can check out Gamespy’s impressions right here).

In between our various play sessions, we had ample opportunity to speak with many members of the team and discover all the work that’s gone into the game since we last saw it in Germany. There have been loads of improvements across the board, including the addition of some entirely new game mechanics and refinements to existing systems. As it stands now, the game is nearly feature complete and highly polished. Still, Mythic is holding back on announcing an official release date until they’re sure the game is as refined as an MMO can be before letting the players jump in and wreck it.

Since Gamespy choose to play as the Dark Elves, we were left to enjoy our experience from the viewpoint of the culturally superior High Elves. (Which is what we would’ve picked anyway, thank you very much.) We’d had a taste of casting before in our earlier preview sessions, so we opted this time for a High Elf Swordsman, or a "tank" in the MMO vernacular. All tanks in the game are measured on the twin axes of magical vs. physical and offensive vs. defensive. The Swordsman is weighted towards the offensive and magical ends of the spectrum, so we felt reasonably prepared to handle any eventuality.