Your concept.. Your game!

Aermord

Imagine you were rich and was the head of a game company about to develop a new MMORPG. Imagine that you did not care of caving in to the "traditional" MMORPG crowd, because money is not an issue. Imagine you could design an MMORPG as YOU wanted it to be.. What would it look like?

 

I'll go first:

 

Theme: Medieval simulation. No magic - that means no magic classes, no clerics with miraculous healing abilities to heal you from near death to full life in an instant. No fantasy creatures, monsters or the like. But a medieval world with peasants, craftmen, merchants and noblemen. A world where noble houses and other factions fight for power not only by the sword, but also by the pen as well. A world where houses need to be build, where a city wall needs to be maintained, where robbers lie waiting for the careless traveller.

Mechanics:

1. 
   Permanent death, when your character dies, he's dead, no respawning of any sort. - But when wounded it will take a character some time to die, time that can be used by his friends to stabilize him and get him to safety. Players can have children within their dynasty and when the child come of age, another player can pick him up and become a part of that family. Whether you will be able to take up playing a child at a social level above you, will be influenced how many social points you have been able to gather with your current characters (and characters before him). That means characters age as well, slowly of course, aging four years within a real life year.
2. 
   Two systems are in place for advancement: A) A "traditional" skill-based experience system where you get better at your skills by simply using them and by receiving teaching. For instance as a young recruit in the army, you would need to be trained by a player or NPC officer on a regular basis in addition to your solo training to become better at your job. In other words, a teacher-apprentice system. The social point system. Based on interaction between players, players can secretly award each other social points. Social points are important to increase your reputation and social position in the game. How other players look at you will help determine your success in life. If you are a bandit, then it might only be a few of your criminal comrades who look at you positively, while the rest of the world doesnt.
3. 
   This wont be an action MMORPG, the pace of PVP and combat in general will be slowed down and done much more realistic. Swords will not be gigantic but be historical correct in their size. Players will be able to fight in formation, where ones position matters. Imagine a shield wall where there will be a front line with shields and a line behind them using halberds and spears. The combat system would support a commander being able to move his troops around by passing on orders to the officers of each company. Skirmish attacks, like from bandits, would not require the same kind of discipline.
4. 
   The game will feature GMs who will launch regular roleplay/social events like feasts at the castle at the kings court and tournaments for the nobility, and to some extend the commoners. Events in the city for the general population, invasions by an enemy host, etc. Social points and experience would be awarded to players based on their involvement.
5. 
   Players will have a physical impact on the world. They cannot "run through each other", they can move things and build things, set up defences around a camp, build a house and so on.

Races and Classes: The game will only feature human "races" originating from different regions of the world. Classes would be based on social vocations and craft, like nobleman, smith, soldier, servant, priest, etc. It would be possible for a character to have more than one "class" and to change "class".

 

(EDIT)The world: No theme park here. Instead the world will be a sandbox where players themselves decide what they want to do. A player may hire another player to do things for him, like a noble who would hire a guard or a servant for his household and pay them for their service. (EDIT)