Hi all, I actually had some free time tonight so I decided to construct a backstory for a potential mmorpg, I know its long but I would appreciate any comments about it. Background: For millenniums, the 5 races of the world of Sovereign battled for control and power. Thousands of lives were lost in great battles which ravaged the terrain around them. The fighting seemed to have no end in sight. On a clear night in the year 3530, a circle of 30 sorcerers, 6 of each race, gathered at the peak of the highest mountain in Sovereign named Altus. The Crimson Order being a guild of sorcerers whose membership transcended races, sought peace for many centuries. After decades of intense research, they were finally ready. The night sky filled with clouds as the magi chanted their incantations, holding in their hands magical texts of great knowledge. The sorcerers knew this spell to be their last. Lightning pierced the ground several times, killing many of the ill-fated casters. The earth trembled beneath their feet and the great peak, Altus split open revealing an immense canyon. Across the land of Sovereign, people awakened and stared in terror at the glowing peak of mount Altus. In it were sucked weapons of all sorts, books of war, as well as the inner conflict spirits (also known as Core) of Sovereigns’ people. Last to enter its canyon were all but one of the remaining members of the Crimson Order and their texts. The last, named Salean, was spared. The event has ever since been remembered as Pax Ortus. The world of Sovereign has for centuries since been one of peace and serenity. In these times of peace, the arts have flourished and the cities of Sovereign grew into awing representation of the near utopian society within. Great texts and instruments of battle remained buried in underground shrines at the base of Mount Altus. The story unfolds: While visiting a secret beach location, a young couple comes upon the wreckage of a looming ship. A terrifying truth is uncovered. The island nation of Sovereign has for ages believed itself to be the world in its entirety. It was now apparent that this assumption was untrue. A search of the ship revealed corpses of strange and never before seen creatures. Magical orbs, when touched, displayed images of large fleets of vessels, each twice the size of the beached ship, filled with hideous beasts. Striking images of cities being burnt and pillages chilled its peaceful spectators. Shortly after this discovery, the grand council of 5 also known as the Tribunal gathered to decide the fate of its citizens. Its decision shocked the nation. Sovereign was not the world but only an island, an island in imminent danger of attack. The Tribunal found no other solution but to undo the effects of the Pax Ortus. Sovereign’s people lacked the courage and spirit required to protect their lands against this looming threat. Driven by the fearsome images seen in the orbs, the members of the Tribunal entered the tomb of Silean. There, lying atop his casket was the last remaining text of the famed 30. It contained instructions to undo the Pax Ortus. The language of the text was ancient and difficult to decipher. Luckily for its readers, it had been rewritten in common from its runic origins by Salean before his death. The members of the Tribunal gathered before Mount Altus and recited its incantations. The day sky blackened, a strong wind swept dirt and leaves from the ground. Lightning struck the mountain, the explosion blinded its onlookers. When the dirt cleared, an entrance became visible. A gigantic door blocked the way. On it were written runes in an long forgotten cryptic language. From cracks in the door leaked small amounts of Core. Many unsuccessful efforts were made to open or destroy the gate. It was apparent that something had gone terribly wrong. A missed or mispronounced note must have kept the spell from achieving its full effect. Luckily, some Core is being released and already, courageous and spirited persons have begun to appear across the land. Many years have passed since then, some of the magical runes on the gate now named the Passage have been deciphered. It is now known that the gate will only allow a single adventurer to enter at a time. To be given entry, a person must attain a certain Core level. And so your journey begins… ************************************************************** The story becomes much more complicated as it unfolds. The game would be a mmorpg with a max population of anywhere from 200-1000 players per world or server. The reason for this is that I want every player to feel as if they play an integral role in the world. Everyone knows that this has been lacking in mmorpgs up until this point. These are my main concerns while designing the game(in no particular order): Strong involving storyline Player immersion and feeling of importance Goal oriented (not just small quests but epic ones as well) Character pride and identity Intuitive gaming environment Multiple gaming styles (not solely combat oriented) Strategic gaming (both in combat and out) I know its not very specific but its all I have for now so please let me know what you think... thank you =) "As a child, I was read the poetry of silence. Perhaps the greatest verse, for it does not bias the mind." Me =) Edited by - hapaboy on September 26, 2001 6:20:51 PM Edited by - hapaboy on September 26, 2001 6:25:57 PM

I think it''s pretty good. Some comments:

The goal of deciphering the runes and entering the portal is static. Once someone gets through, the knowledge of how to do it will spread rapidly. The ''core level'' mechanic may prevent everyone from doing it, but the mystery gets lost pretty fast.

Since the goal is static there needs to be further motivation for later arriving heroes to try and solve the gate quests, if they continue to be necessary.


The core leaks through the doors were fixed. This suggests that there is a fixed total for the core energy floating around. You might need an explanation or some game mechanics to prevent player hoarding of ''core energy''. As an alternative, leave the cracks in place, as a constant if small supply of danger to the populace.

Dont worry about the runes on the door. The remaining runes only tell part of a story and I expect it to be common knowledge as the story unfolds. Deciphering them will not be a quest of any kind. The quest will instead lie in aquiring the right level of Core to be able to enter the door.

I decided to make it a temporary leak to explain the limited amount of heroes but I agree that a permanent leak may be better. Reason is that I want the creatures who inhabit sovereign to also have their Core returned to them (Yes just about everything has Core).

You can receive Core by either killing beasts or aquiring relics.

Now for the reason for future adventurers to enter the gate. Although some Core is being leaked out. The ancient weapons and texts have not. To be able to defend themselves from impending doom. The heroes must retrieve these from within the gate. Also, since the Core leaked out is very small, to attain a higher level of Core which would make you much more powerful. You must make your way through the gate.


Now for Tacit''s questions:
Who rewrote the ancient unreadable text in common tongue so that the tribunal could read it?
-Salean, being the last of the order, rewrote them before his death so that future generations could read it.

Three-hundred years had passed and the people didn''t know that there was a world outside their island? Did they ''forget''?
Ok I think I may not have been clear on this. The people have just recently found out that there was a world outside the island. 300 years before this was the Pax Ortus. The pc would start off only a few months or years after the discovery of an outside world.

First Sovereign is described as a world, then an island. Which one is it?
I described it this way to keep the discovery a secret until told later in the backstory. Sovereign is only an island. They believed that they were instead the world until recent findings.


Hope this helps....thanks for the feedback guys =)

any more suggestions or comments would be great =)