Don't ask me about that header image, because it's totally the one they use in the news post, and I figured Funcom knows best. Regardless, we've got some sweet subscription packs and free bonus item packs coming for the month of February, so if you were considering checking out Age of Conan, I'd say that February is the month you should be doing it. Featured this month are several offers, including:

For Free Players:

• The Royal Court Access Pack - 60 days of premium game time, the "Rise of the Godslayer" expansion, and the "Savage Coast of Turan" for 3000 Funcom points.

For Premium Members:

• Turan Royal Cache - A three month upgrade with the "Savage Coast of Turan" adventure pack and a bevy of items.
• Khitan Royal Cache - A six month upgrade that gives all of the above while also including free acess to the "Rise of the Godslayer" expansion pack.
• Royal Aquilonian Cache - Includes all of the above in addition to a level 50 character option and an additional character slot.

Finally, all players will be eligible to claim a free bonus item pack in the in-game store during each week in February. Starting from the 5th of February, regardless if you're a free or premium player, just make sure to log in every week to grab your swag. Happy Age of... Conaning!

Kind of ridiculous to realize that it's been a full month since New Years, but if Age of Conan is already posting their Monthly Development Update for January 2012, well, that's about the best indication you'll get that we're nearing the end of the month.

In this month's development update, Funcom's Craig Morrison noted that the team was really happy with their big content pushes in 2011 (naturally), but that they really want to focus on systems for the first half of the year. What this means, for the most part, is that they really want to revamp the trade-skill system of Age of Conan, with the next big update hoping to offer "true depth, with an engaging and interesting system." Morrison notes that the team really wants to look "further back" for inspirations, meaning they want to recreate those old-school MMO crafting ecosystems as opposed to our modern day "point and click" crafting options. It all sounds very wonderful and ambitious, so let's hope the team can hit their stride going into 2012!

A big content update for Age of Conan fans has arrived with the launch of the House of Crom, a new dungeon hub that will have players revisiting the remains of an Atlantean temple. There will be two dungeons available in the House of Crom: one social dungeon that supports multiple groups, The Threshold of Divinity, and a new six man dungeon, The Vile Nativity.

There are some sweet, sweet items to be found in these two dungeons, and Funcom notes that these are the largest indoor dungeons they have created to date. As well, these dungeons feature some new polished gameplay mechanics, with players needing to take advantage of unexpected allies to solving cryptic Atlantean riddles. Now I'm pretty much just reading from the descriptions, but that's some pretty compelling writing right there.

Go explore Age of Conan's House of Crom!

Those Slaughter Steeds are looking reaaaal good. Age of Conan is ushering in the new year with a bombardment of time limited steeds that will only be in store for one week per steed. There are a grand total of four steeds to pick up, with a Bronzesteel Slaughter Steed (pictured above) for week one (Dec 14th - 20th), a Redfury War Wolf for week two (Dec 21st - 27th), a Redsteel Slaughter Steed for week three (Dec 28th - Jan 3rd) and, finally, a Bronzefury War Wolf for week four (Jan 4th - 10th).

Mind you, while there is no promise that these steeds will never make their return, limited time offers rarely stay on offer year round. Check 'em out on the official Age of Conan website!

It's time to celebrate the holidays in the only way that Age of Conan knows how... through battle! Age of Conan's winter seasonal "Bloody Solstice" is returning as players need to gather up Aesir Warriors to defend their feasting grounds against Gyrmir Bloodbeard and his Vanir Raiders.

It will be a bloody winter holiday for Age of Conan players, but for those who make the journey, there is an Aesir Snowcatcher hat, a Pillaged Vanir Hauberk chestpiece, a Wooden Tankard, and even the Cloak of Bloodbeard himself. So get in there and make this an exciting holiday for all!

Last time I spoke to Funcom's Craig Morrison, Age of Conan was just making the shift to free-to-play, and we were all waiting expectantly to see how it would pan out. Of course, everything went according to plan (or even above that!), and the team has already seen some huge population growth. Now, with AoC's recent developer update detailing updates 3.1 to 4.0, I decided that the time was right to catch up with Craig once more to catch up on what's been happening in Age of Conan as well as to shed some light on his big plans for updates 3.1 through to 4.0. Read on for some exclusive new details on AoC's PvP plans, Dreamworld single server technology, and more!

There's a whoooole lot of things planned for Age of Conan, and there's no better way to see what's to come than to take a peek at AoC's Monthly Development Update. First on the list is their Dreamworld Technology update, along with a bevy of new dungeon and raid content, like the House of Crom, the Jade Citadel (which has some of "the most complex" encounters Funcom has done thus far), the final Khitai raid instance, and much more.

Also of note is that with Update 3.4 (Funcom is estimating Q1 2012), their newly implemented Dreamworld Single server technology will allow for players to have cross-server mini-games and a group or instance finder system. So it looks like Dungeon Finder is finally coming to Age of Conan! We'll keep you posted as new information comes out!

With so many games experiencing so much success from their free-to-play shift, I'm guessing it's going to really suck for the one MMORPG that doesn't see big numbers after making the transition. Luckily, Age of Conan is just another big success story, as they've revealed in their quarterly report that more than 600,000 players have played the free-to-play version of Age of Conan since July.

To celebrate, Funcom is now giving away "The King's Reward pack" to everyone who logs in before Monday, November 21, 2011. This reward pack can be found in the special offers tab in the store, and it gives a wide variety of potions for players to continue their adventures. Barbarians ahoy!

The concept of Atlantis has always been rather odd as a narrative hook; in most cases, designers simply use Atlantis like any other plot-advancing tool, dangling this "lost land" at the end of a stick and pushing the character along on their journey to find it. In other cases, however, Atlantis can be a fascinating concept when its history and lore is explored or reinvented for other purposes.

In this month's October update, the team at Age of Conan is detailing their next update to the game, set to be released by the end of the year. The new dungeon they have planned, called the House of Crom, will be an ancient stone temple originally built by the Atlanteans before their unexpected demise. Some of the lore going into designing this dungeon is rather fascinating, so it's definitely worth a read!

Do you like the thought of having an NPC named after your character in Age of Conan: Unchained? How about the possibility of receiving your very own in-game "pleasure companion"? Then you're definitely going to want to enter the Age of Conan: Unchained Sweepstakes on Facebook! Check out all of the prizes:

• Grand Prize: Barbaric Glory Elite! Winner receives a Lifetime Premium Subscription to Conan Unchained as well as 6000 Funcom points and the exclusive opportunity to have an NPC named after one of your characters.
• First Prize: 5 lucky fans will receive The Ultimate Conan Fan pack! This includes your very own “Pleasure Companion” in game as well as 2500 Funcom points and 3 rare purebred mounts to travel in style. Mounts can be used on any character on your account. This includes the Purebred White Vaaghasan Slaughter Steed, Purebred Shemite Horse, and Purebred Tarpani Stallion.
• Second Prize: 25 winners will receive 1000 Funcom points to use in selected Funcom games.

All you need to do is head over to the Age of Conan: Unchained Facebook page and submit your entry by Nov. 22 at noon EST for a chance to win a lifetime of barbaric glory!