2nd/3rd tier flag removal & Aid Grimel quest

[Velurian]

I've heard that the 2nd and 3rd tier PoP flags have been removed on Test.

Down the road, I was planning on doing the Aid Grimel quest, or at least the first few steps (it will be a good long time before my guild is elemental planes-capable, but the earlier flags should be feasible by the time I have my skills up to the necessary level).

But if the flags are going to be removed, it's going to be a lot harder to convince my guildmates that it's worthwhile to go to the trouble of killing, say, Terris Thule or Bertox.

I'm assuming that the flags probably still will be required for advancement through the Aid Grimel quest, but I'm hoping not. On that note: is there anyone on Test that has not killed Bertox but does have smithing up to 220 or higher (i.e., before now, had the skill for the first step but not the flag) and can test one way or the other what Grimel's behavior is?

[Fayne]

The flag removals are mostly to let casual players xp in most PoP zones. No where has it been stated that Sony is removing flag requirements from advancing to the elemental planes. So if you are doing the Aid Grimel quest, people are going to need to do all those flags to enter the Elemental planes anyway.

[Doremi]

Has it been confirmed from Test that the 2nd and 3rd tier flags have in fact been removed, or have they just been dropped as a requirement to enter 2nd and 3rd tier zones? I.e., if you're in on a Terris-Thule kill, you still get flagged as having killed her (but it doesn't gain you anything in terms of access).

Sony could then leave the requirements in place as a sort of "test of planar experience" used by Aid Grimel when evaluating you: only those that were really motivated to earn the flags would be allowed to proceed to the next stage (if getting near grandmastery in multiple tradeskills weren't a sufficient display of motivation). Plus you'd get extra bragging rights.

[borblefoot furtoe]

They are not removing the flags from the game. You still need them to get to the elemental planes. You just won't need them to have access to POV/POS.

Borblefoot Furtoe
57th Season Druid
Firiona Vie Server

[Tinile]

They are not removing the flags from the game. You still need them to get to the elemental planes. You just won't need them to have access to POV/POS.

Or BoT/HoH/CoD/PoT

The flags will remain in game. The flags will be needed, as is, to get into the elem planes or do quests such as Aid Grimel.

If you can, get the flags anyway. They stated we will be getting some type of reward for having the flags we have. Word going around is that it will be a charm that gets better with the more flags you have.

[Emelyn]

The flags that they are removing aren't the ones you need for Aid Grimel - I have all the ones they are removing, I still cannot start the quest due to lack of flags.

[lasertop]

So is it safe to assume then that removing the flags will make this quest easier to achieve for someone just starting on it?

[Tinile]

So is it safe to assume then that removing the flags will make this quest easier to achieve for someone just starting on it?

No, you still will need the exact same flags as now.

[lasertop]

Yes but if you dont need the flags leading up to the flags you need that would make it easier

[Taraddar]

Yes but if you dont need the flags leading up to the flags you need that would make it easier

All indications are that the zone access is just like the for exp only quests that currently exsist right now. For getting in to the elemental planes you'll still need every flag you need now down to the maze walk in PoN.

Everything I've seen so far says this will have exactly 0 effect on the quest.