i hear a lot of people talking about it, i tired to research it but i don't get what it is. Can someone explain it to me?
pretty much you make 2 EQ account and make 2 different characters and play them together. Some people like boxing others like soloing it depends on personal opinion.
Back in 1999, I'm not sure PCs that could run more than one copy of EQ at a time were available. Thus, if you wanted to play more than one character at once you needed a 2nd computer which was referred to as a box because that's what they used to look like.
You run 2 or more instances, usually on the same PC nowadays. You manually switch instance, you set up a way to alt tab, or people use software that lets them send commands from EQ instance to EQ instance. In essence it makes it easier to play the game and you don't have to worry about finding a group anymore.
There is a free program called WinEQ2 that manages multiple log ins, it works great and is very easy to use. I run up to 4 different accounts in windowed mode, as I find manually clicking on what character I want in the explorer tray to work out faster for me than tabbing. If you combine this with macros (something that I have an obsession with), you can manage multiple characters pretty easily. There is other software available that makes the process much easier as you can control everything from one screen, but there is a cost involved. Boxing is a fun little meta game, I find it really enjoyable to try out different combos of teams. It's also a great way to go see content other people may not be interested in. I love taking my box team back through content I used to do when I first started playing the game. If you start out with 2 accounts, you can use a free account as the 2nd box, wizard are great free account box characters, as they don't require a lot of AA and are very easy to manage as a 2nd box. The added major side bonus to this is being able to run 2 mercs, having a tank and cleric merc really allows you a lot of freedom to try out different combos.
It originally meant loading up 2 computers (boxes) and playing 2 accounts at once. Now it generally means loading multiple EQ clients but instead of 2 PCs, it's just one PC, logging in multiple accounts and grouping them together in game, controlling more than 1 character at a time. With PCs able to handle up to dozens of EQ clients smoothly, boxing has become very popular. I would argue that more people box than do not box, as it makes you less reliant on looking for a group to progress.
I use 4 computers, it makes tapping hot keys for the cleric to spot heal, group heal, or the 1 min heal over time, while mage nukes, and chanter nukes or mezzes etc. Since I find that there are so many variations of key taps I use, the program that makes the alt characters hit the same key doesn't appeal to me.
There's no additional software required. Just tab out to the desktop and launch EQ a second time and log into a second account.
To add to the other responses, you might have 3 characters you run at the same time (each on their own account) and each one has a mercenary. That gives you a full group, but you only have to work 3 characters. For myself, I would prefer to run all the characters and not use mercenaries. It lets me use a real wizard who can do ports, or a rogue who can do lockpicking. Plus, I can also make more varied groups than with merc which are limited to warrior/cleric/wizard/rogue. It's more work (you need to get them gear, spells, and a larger pool of AA's) and they can fall behind in levels whereas merc's always stay at your level.
Such a shame. There are so many better single-player games than EQ. Go get groups, it's much more fun!
So glad to read the answers to this question, I was wondering about that myself. It sounds like great fun, but I don't think I'd be coordinated enough to do this. lol
I tried it for the first time earlier today. Used my 55 sk alt with a heal merc and a 55 war with a caster merc on a free acount in acryilia caverns. Used a desktop and a laptop, each with a wireless mouse. Was much easier than I thought it would ever be, got tons of exp super quick. To mr. findagrp, whens the last time you lvl'd a new toon? Groups are rare low lvls. Groups are unicorn rare mid levels (40-68ish). Most lowbies anymore are returning players, and most returning players are after nostalgia and comfort, heading to the random zone they left off in, or the hot zone that isnt a hot zone anymore.
I did. Had a full, 6-player, no merc group tonight. Everyone had a blast. I don't have a problem with people boxing or soloing when grouping is impractical, or impossible, but if you've given up even trying to group when you have the time, I think it's time to move on as I don't see the point of playing an MMO alone all the time. One of my favorite commands in EQ is /lfguild. Find a guild of folks who like to play at the same times and in roughly the same way you do. If you can't find it on your server, make characters on other servers and /lfguild there. Don't let a 2500 SC server transfer stand in the way of your enjoyment of the game. You solo boxers spend more money than I do on this game, but I'm making friends. I'm meeting new players every week. I think most people don't want to play EQ alone, and by eschewing groups you're not helping the game retain it's player base like I am. Nobody comes back to EQ and says "I used to solo/box and I'm coming back to do that some more." No, they say "I made a lot of friends in EQ, and I hope to find some of them still here, or make new ones." Only then do they dig beneath the ugly surface of this rickety old game and find that it's vastly improved and a real gem of a game in addition to having lots of fun people to play with. For low level groups, try the Vox server. It has at least 4x the low-level population of any other standard server. I don't know which server is best at high levels, but I know that Bertoxxulous, where I am, is among the best. Plus, since I'm on Bertoxxulous, everyone has their J5 mercs, and everyone has their epics.
Well that makes me feel kinda like a loner. I played exclusively solo classes (druid, then enchanter charming, then necro), and while I was guilded, I used to challenge myself to see how far in levels I could get entirely solo. While I'd chat with guildies and /ooc, I don't recall any single person ever standing out in my memory, but the game as a whole really did. /shrug. stereotype b-b-b-reaker
One of the greatest charms of EQ is that there are as many ways to play it as there are people playing it. I love to group. I love to box. I love to TS. It just depends how I feel that day and if any of my friends or guildies are on. Two days ago while boxing 3 chars with 2 mercs, I had a tell...Fellow wanted to group with me, I dropped a merc, let him and his friend join and made 2 new friends. They were in a zone that was over their heads and so I was able to help them get several levels. They appreciated it and we agreed to group if we ever were on at the same time again. This sort of thing happens to me a lot. After one such group, I was asked if he could join my guild. I think that it is importent to treat others well so that they want to join with you again. I have freely given of gear and plat to help low level players enjoy the game more. Groups are out there. Join a family or leveling guild...help others and they will help you. I mostly play on FV so I don't really know about other servers. Good luck and Safe Journeys.
