I'm curious. And maybe this goes to the NPC interaction GM, but what kind of interactions can we expect from NPCs -in general-. To get more to the point, if I'm walking around town, is the town gonna feel -alive-? I'm NOT talking about each and every NPC having an in-deapth background, but I'm talking about them moving around, maybe at least looking like they're having a conversation with eachother and trading, even if they are or arn't spouting one of 20 pre-scripted conversations. I'm tired of walking through a town and seeing people standing in place, or pacing, and those are the ONLY NPCs... CoH is nice because at least there are people IN the city walking around, but I'd be nice if it went one step further. Perhaps the NPC walks from his or her house, appearing at dawn every morning, to walk over to their stand to sell their wears, and then retreats in the night? That way they're not standing at their cart 24/7 in sun and rain desperately waiting for ever last sale. Or perhaps you're walking around and two NPCs randomly decide to talk to eachother... about their favorite cake rescipe, or that low carb diets will kill you....
so my main question is... how are NPCs being used to add imersion so that the world feels like its being lived in by more then PCs
Originally posted by Lord_Paladin I'm curious. And maybe this goes to the NPC interaction GM, but what kind of interactions can we expect from NPCs -in general-. To get more to the point, if I'm walking around town, is the town gonna feel -alive-? I'm NOT talking about each and every NPC having an in-deapth background, but I'm talking about them moving around, maybe at least looking like they're having a conversation with eachother and trading, even if they are or arn't spouting one of 20 pre-scripted conversations. I'm tired of walking through a town and seeing people standing in place, or pacing, and those are the ONLY NPCs... CoH is nice because at least there are people IN the city walking around, but I'd be nice if it went one step further. Perhaps the NPC walks from his or her house, appearing at dawn every morning, to walk over to their stand to sell their wears, and then retreats in the night? That way they're not standing at their cart 24/7 in sun and rain desperately waiting for ever last sale. Or perhaps you're walking around and two NPCs randomly decide to talk to eachother... about their favorite cake rescipe, or that low carb diets will kill you.... so my main question is... how are NPCs being used to add imersion so that the world feels like its being lived in by more then PCs
Not all NPC's are going to be just standing in one place. A good example is the one given....
As for normal NPC"s that players may "need" to play a game... like NPC healers or armorsmiths....etc. Making them vanish just because the game may decide it is nighttime could be a bad thing for people. People need to be able to play... and not just for half of the time. I know some games do it... even Dragonrealms does it in Shard. But time will tell for sure.
Originally posted by HJ-Royce Not all NPC's are going to be just standing in one place. A good example is the one given.... http://www.kmtdesigns.com/hjfaq/index.php?action=artikel&cat=15&id=15&artlang=en&highlight=NPC As for normal NPC"s that players may "need" to play a game... like NPC healers or armorsmiths....etc. Making them vanish just because the game may decide it is nighttime could be a bad thing for people. People need to be able to play... and not just for half of the time. I know some games do it... even Dragonrealms does it in Shard. But time will tell for sure.
I understand the possession thing, and quest NPCs running up to greet you, and thats definently one of the major pluses to HJ. I played WISH (*Cries*) and they did this, and it led to the single most incredible time i've ever had in an RPG of any kind. Even tabletop.
Anyways, I'm talking about the NPCs that are supposed to make the world feel alive. The people that are just "living" in the world. Alot of MMOs have the functionary NPCs (healers, vendors, etc...) and then the quest NPCs, and then no one else, or a couple people standing around randomly.
I'm talking about the NPCs that serve no other purpose then to make the world feel populated.
Not all NPC's are going to be just standing in one place. A good example is the one given.... http://www.kmtdesigns.com/hjfaq/index.php?action=artikel&cat=15&id=15&artlang=en&highlight=NPC As for normal NPC"s that players may "need" to play a game... like NPC healers or armorsmiths....etc. Making them vanish just because the game may decide it is nighttime could be a bad thing for people. People need to be able to play... and not just for half of the time. I know some games do it... even Dragonrealms does it in Shard. But time will tell for sure.
I understand the possession thing, and quest NPCs running up to greet you, and thats definently one of the major pluses to HJ. I played WISH (*Cries*) and they did this, and it led to the single most incredible time i've ever had in an RPG of any kind. Even tabletop.
Anyways, I'm talking about the NPCs that are supposed to make the world feel alive. The people that are just "living" in the world. Alot of MMOs have the functionary NPCs (healers, vendors, etc...) and then the quest NPCs, and then no one else, or a couple people standing around randomly.
I'm talking about the NPCs that serve no other purpose then to make the world feel populated.
Just... filler people then. Got ya.
This is beyond my scope to answer. I know it may seem simple, but I'm unaware of anyone from onsite saying this is happening or not.
Hence, I can only give you info that they have already released, anywhere. (for the most part)
I completely agree about the "non-role" NPCs living in the world to fill it out more. Think Morrowind type NPCs for this idea. Many of them were involved in quests, either large or small. But many, many more were just living in the world. They had names, perhaps were in their homes or in the open wandering. They had unique looks and different schedules.
It might be a bit more of a strain on the rendering engine to add more NPCs to the world, but it adds to the immersiveness factor in a big way.
Originally posted by Lord_Paladin I'm curious too. I plan on playing a paladin, and as such... what role are gods/religion gonna play in the world if any?
I am the one and only God, and accept offerings of virgins and Suwari pelts.
Er... anyways. The gods have always been a major focus and have always had influence in the worlds created by Simu. I'd expect the same within HJ. In gemstone who you worship as a cleric heavily effects the look of your spells cast, and even whether you're more effective against the living or the undead. There was even a 4 year long good vs. evil event that was overseen by several gods as they pitted the players against each other. (It may have lasted longer then that. I don't remember exactly since I was never involved in it, as my character tends to be very insane and neutral.)
How they'll play a role in HJ though. I'm unsure, but I'm sure that information will come to light eventually once the Devs have it finalized.
My wife pointed this game out to me a few weeks ago in a picture from PC Gamer. I started looking at it and all I really would like to know is About when can we expect to be able to play. I'm nursing a WoW account but MMORPG's have really started to turn off because of the lack of any real dynamic interaction. I can only do so many "go kill 10 rats and bring me their Tails" type "quest" (calling kill task quest is just silly)
There are some really great persistant worlds for NWN that just completely outclass any MMORPG, is this the type of world dynamic we can expect from HJ? It is much easier for a NWN world because it has a much smaller capacity for players (I think 64 is the max in a game) and the people behind the game are usually 5 to 10. Pretty good ratio there. HJ is really pushing the GM interaction and I am hoping for it to work out.
To compare, in WoW when I first "spawn" I get a welcome message and kill task (usually killing wolves or something minor like that) in return for a ripped up pair of boots. In NWN I found I get a very rich backstory and history right off to bat. (In the better persistant worlds ) and I have yet to come across a whole lot of kill task. (I think it is because kill task are very easy to make - heck even I can make them - and most of the community wouldn't go for it and move onto a more elaborite world) I know if I played a Mod and I got a kill task and a ripped up pair of boots for a reward I would shut it off and find another one.
So enough with my rant, sorry if this question has been answered already, this is a huge thread. When can we play
Originally posted by Torak My wife pointed this game out to me a few weeks ago in a picture from PC Gamer. I started looking at it and all I really would like to know is About when can we expect to be able to play. I'm nursing a WoW account but MMORPG's have really started to turn off because of the lack of any real dynamic interaction. I can only do so many "go kill 10 rats and bring me their Tails" type "quest" (calling kill task quest is just silly) There are some really great persistant worlds for NWN that just completely outclass any MMORPG, is this the type of world dynamic we can expect from HJ? It is much easier for a NWN world because it has a much smaller capacity for players (I think 64 is the max in a game) and the people behind the game are usually 5 to 10. Pretty good ratio there. HJ is really pushing the GM interaction and I am hoping for it to work out. To compare, in WoW when I first "spawn" I get a welcome message and kill task (usually killing wolves or something minor like that) in return for a ripped up pair of boots. In NWN I found I get a very rich backstory and history right off to bat. (In the better persistant worlds ) and I have yet to come across a whole lot of kill task. (I think it is because kill task are very easy to make - heck even I can make them - and most of the community wouldn't go for it and move onto a more elaborite world) I know if I played a Mod and I got a kill task and a ripped up pair of boots for a reward I would shut it off and find another one. So enough with my rant, sorry if this question has been answered already, this is a huge thread. When can we play
The planned release is this year. BUt as time goes on we'll get a more "exact" date released.
As for Go-Kill-10-Rats... lather, rinse, repeat, I think that type of "quest" is illegal in HJ. Our quest team is filled with some very ingenious and creative ladies and gentleman. Just reading some of their hello messages here on www.mmorpg.com proves that.
What I like though, is seeing them in action. Great people, all of them.
As for backstory, our lore is, if you ask me, second to none. As such, it's something I read about once a month. It's a great read.
You can find bits and pieces of our lore that have been released through the various interviews here on this site. (not to mention some great screenshots)
And let me just say, I happy your wife noticed the article! Thank her for me and I hope to see you in HJ.
Originally posted by Amlaith If she is stationed in Ramstein than it isn' far from me, because I live in the Saarland. So I quite often meet people from there, who are really nice. ---------------
We are stationed in Heidelberg, but Ramstein and Kaiserslauten are only an hour or so away so we have been there.
I know Wanago golf course, but I can't say I have had the pleasure of ever playing on it. I wasn't into to golf at all while I lived there, but I have played some on the US golf course here.
The descriptions I've read so far often refer to CoH/CoV when describing the instancing in the game. There was also reference to instancing general or world areas such as EQII did. In your opinion are these descriptions accurate of the current status of this game. I've played a variety of MMO's if you think there is a better comparison as to the amount of instancing vs. static world please describe. I know this is a hot topic, for me it's just a balancing issue. I like instancing, but it can be easily overdone. Personally the worst instancing I've experienced was EQII zones where you had to LFG in soandso3 and you entered soandso2 but found out it got changed to soandso1 when you weren't paying attention. Just made for confusion and really took you out of immersion when your trying to figure out which zone of 5 your other 5 party members are in.
The system of leveling up weapons, some have described like a another character, confuses me some. It reminds me of socket system of just upgrading a weapon, does that seem accurate. How itemcentric is this game? Do you get a weapon at the start and then just level it up to max level. Do you change weapons alot to keep up with your progression through the game. I have tried games, like CoH, where there really wasn't gear but upgrades, is this what is being described for HJ?
From the descriptions of the game so far it appears to be any class and race combo's allowed. From reading this post it appears that you can wear any armor with any class or race as well. How does that work? Are there any restrictions in the game for gear? Would a plate wearing caster have some penalty for the extra armor? Would the caster be equally profiecent with all weapons as a warrior?
There's been a little information about pets. Is there a pet class, for example is the Necro a class that would have a pet? Are there non class specific pets that are usable in combat? I'm curious as I've seen people with 9 pets in SoG (Prequel to Dark and Light) and when you are attacking with small armies at a time it seems to me to deteriorate from the main character I'm leveling and the skill involved in playing him/her. In WoW you get pets that follow you and that's cool and all but only classes get combat pets, which, I'd say is typical for MMO's I've played before.
Finally I enjoy following MMO's and am always looking for that one that I can get into at the start and invest a few years into. From the community support I've witnessed to date I'm definitely going to be trying this game out.
The descriptions I've read so far often refer to CoH/CoV when describing the instancing in the game. There was also reference to instancing general or world areas such as EQII did. In your opinion are these descriptions accurate of the current status of this game. I've played a variety of MMO's if you think there is a better comparison as to the amount of instancing vs. static world please describe. I know this is a hot topic, for me it's just a balancing issue. I like instancing, but it can be easily overdone. Personally the worst instancing I've experienced was EQII zones where you had to LFG in soandso3 and you entered soandso2 but found out it got changed to soandso1 when you weren't paying attention. Just made for confusion and really took you out of immersion when your trying to figure out which zone of 5 your other 5 party members are in.
Of the games out there now using instancing City of Hero's comes the closest. A lot of the quest areas will be instanced but we also have common areas where players will not only gather to chat, such as a city or town, but also where there will be open hunting or exploring.
I do remember reading that we would be able to instance these common areas, much like City of Heros or EQ2 do currently, but that was mainly to insure a stable play experience so would be based on the number of players in any one area. I haven't heard what that number is or if we even know yet what it will be.
The system of leveling up weapons, some have described like a another character, confuses me some. It reminds me of socket system of just upgrading a weapon, does that seem accurate. How itemcentric is this game? Do you get a weapon at the start and then just level it up to max level. Do you change weapons alot to keep up with your progression through the game. I have tried games, like CoH, where there really wasn't gear but upgrades, is this what is being described for HJ?
I'll be honest, I haven't looked at any of the weapon/gear mechanics so I won't comment on the weapons.
From the descriptions of the game so far it appears to be any class and race combo's allowed. From reading this post it appears that you can wear any armor with any class or race as well. How does that work? Are there any restrictions in the game for gear? Would a plate wearing caster have some penalty for the extra armor? Would the caster be equally profiecent with all weapons as a warrior?
Yes any race can be any class though some races will have an easier time with certain classes than others. Again, I haven't looked at armor mechanics so I won't comment on whether or not there will be "class specific" armor or weapon/armor proficency. What I will say is that what your armor looks like - the model that's displayed in the game - will have no bearing on what protection it provides. In other words if you want to be a barbarian warrior in a loin cloth you'll be just as protected as someone running around in full plate. The key here is that the picture drawn on your screen may not reflect the reality of the stats behind it. The idea is that it's your character and you should be able to dress however you want and not have to look like every other warrior out there just because that's the model an artist chose to represent the armor you want to wear.
There's been a little information about pets. Is there a pet class, for example is the Necro a class that would have a pet? Are there non class specific pets that are usable in combat? I'm curious as I've seen people with 9 pets in SoG (Prequel to Dark and Light) and when you are attacking with small armies at a time it seems to me to deteriorate from the main character I'm leveling and the skill involved in playing him/her. In WoW you get pets that follow you and that's cool and all but only classes get combat pets, which, I'd say is typical for MMO's I've played before.
Been playing WoW and EQ2 among other things and one of the visual things that seems so stupid and ugly is that when you sheath your sword or shoulder your bow, it just sits on your hip on against your back, looking exactly the same as when you held it in your hand.
Q: I'm just curious if weapons in HJ will go into sheaths, or if they will disappear altogether, or if it'll be much like every other MMO in that the weapon just magically clings to your skin?
"(The) Iraqi people owe the American people a huge debt of gratitude." - George W Bush. Oh. My. God.
Will beta testers keep their acquired skills, and character names once the game goes live, or will they be reset?
Will beta testers receive any in-game rewards once the game goes live?
Once the game goes live is everyone starting on a clean slate?
Will Simutronics be giving any in-game items for the first batch of players to join the community? Dragonrealms did the "TrailBlazer Badge" I believe.
The Giant Tortoise - Part I - Will we be able to build upon these great beasts, or is that soley for NPC characters? Part II - I have a 100 more questions so i'll wait and see what response Part I brings. (ducks)
Originally posted by Leiron Hello All. Got a few for the GMs here. Will beta testers keep their acquired skills, and character names once the game goes live, or will they be reset? Will beta testers receive any in-game rewards once the game goes live? Once the game goes live is everyone starting on a clean slate? Leiron RD
I've never heard of any game allowing Beta testers to carry over their skills and experience. It becomes a huge balance issue, and really isn't fair to others. The only thing I've ever seen done that seperated the the regulars from the beta people was done with CoH. They allowed the pre-order beta people to log into the game a couple days early. Which I thought was good. Because it wasn't enough time to unbalance things, but it was enough to lower congestion around the newbie mobs.
I do like when games allow tester to keep their names once the game goes live. I don't know if we'll be doing that, I'm just a builder, but I'm sure if enough people want it that it may happen.
I dont know about experience/skills but you they did allow items to stay from beta day 1. I remember having a backpack that you could literally drop a house in to.
In DR they had a fest while the game was still in alpha/beta. So players were able to keep their items, names, a trail blazzer badge and exp. On average there were only 20 - 40ish people on at a given time before they opened the door for AOL users. So the beta was not all that big. Never heard anyone complain about this either.
Originally posted by jgankum In DR they had a fest while the game was still in alpha/beta. So players were able to keep their items, names, a trail blazzer badge and exp. On average there were only 20 - 40ish people on at a given time before they opened the door for AOL users. So the beta was not all that big. Never heard anyone complain about this either.
There's a vast difference between text gamers and graphical gamers. Greed and jealousy are a lot more rampant in graphical games. There's also a very different maturity level. Also the vocal minority in a game with only a few thousand players won't be heard as loudly. There also wasn't a Simu public forum for people to voice their opinions.
Most people probably didn't even know there was a beta or that the testers got to keep their stuff. Games weren't watched with a microscope back then like they are now. You can't do anything with a game now without it being known, no matter how obscure the game is.
Originally posted by Pham_Trinli What types of GUI menus/guild support features are planned for implementation at this point? I.e. Guild halls? Guild member tracking panel? Guild statistics?
In a vague nutshell...
If it's part of your clan/guild and you have the permission to do so, you can manipulate it. (with the exception of things like start dates)
Very vague I know. But you get the idea.
I'm sorry I can not list the features at this time.
1. What is the release date for HJ planned for now?
2. What features do clans currently provide for their running, maintenance and socializing in them? (ex: clan halls, housing, clan ranking system, etc.)
3. What is the leveling system? Is it strictly skill based in that you only level up skills individually? Is it skill based and level based? Meaning that you level up skills but at the same time level up your overall level which increases attributes, etc? Is it completely level based with the ability to level up skills only after a certain level has been attained?
4. In some of the screenshots the graphics look better than others. Is this because they were captured on different systems?
5. What's the economy like? What's the basic monetary unit that all other units are divisible by? (ex: ours in America is the penny) In most games it might be the gold coin or the silver coin, etc.
6. Is housing planned to be instanced or noninstanced? Is it planned to be set in specific locations or rather determined by the players/builders to place the housing and to construct it anywhere they want and are able to?
7. What is the basic unit of level advancement in this game and how does it relate to progressing your character? Ex: In most games it is the experience point and it progresses your character in that when you achieve enough of them (enough experience) you may then distribute it to raise skills, attributes, or your overall level.
8. Are there mounts in this game? Like, can we ride horses or other stranger and more exotic mounts in this game? If so, are they the sort of mounts that pop out of your backpack when double-clicked (AC2/WOW) or are they the kind that are persistent and stick with you until you put them in stables or log off or the like?
"Put your foot where your mouth is." - Wisdom from my grandfather "Paper or plastic? ... because I'm afraid I'll have to suffocate you unless you put this bag on your head..." - Ethnitrek AC1: Wierding from Harvestgain
Originally posted by Adreal 1. What is the release date for HJ planned for now? 2. What features do clans currently provide for their running, maintenance and socializing in them? (ex: clan halls, housing, clan ranking system, etc.) 3. What is the leveling system? Is it strictly skill based in that you only level up skills individually? Is it skill based and level based? Meaning that you level up skills but at the same time level up your overall level which increases attributes, etc? Is it completely level based with the ability to level up skills only after a certain level has been attained? 4. In some of the screenshots the graphics look better than others. Is this because they were captured on different systems? 5. What's the economy like? What's the basic monetary unit that all other units are divisible by? (ex: ours in America is the penny) In most games it might be the gold coin or the silver coin, etc. 6. Is housing planned to be instanced or noninstanced? Is it planned to be set in specific locations or rather determined by the players/builders to place the housing and to construct it anywhere they want and are able to? 7. What is the basic unit of level advancement in this game and how does it relate to progressing your character? Ex: In most games it is the experience point and it progresses your character in that when you achieve enough of them (enough experience) you may then distribute it to raise skills, attributes, or your overall level. 8. Are there mounts in this game? Like, can we ride horses or other stranger and more exotic mounts in this game? If so, are they the sort of mounts that pop out of your backpack when double-clicked (AC2/WOW) or are they the kind that are persistent and stick with you until you put them in stables or log off or the like?
Comments
HJ-Diviana
Hero's Journey GM
Hero's Journey Official Site
Hero's Hall
WELL, I want a PONY, and soon!
I'm curious. And maybe this goes to the NPC interaction GM, but what kind of interactions can we expect from NPCs -in general-. To get more to the point, if I'm walking around town, is the town gonna feel -alive-? I'm NOT talking about each and every NPC having an in-deapth background, but I'm talking about them moving around, maybe at least looking like they're having a conversation with eachother and trading, even if they are or arn't spouting one of 20 pre-scripted conversations. I'm tired of walking through a town and seeing people standing in place, or pacing, and those are the ONLY NPCs... CoH is nice because at least there are people IN the city walking around, but I'd be nice if it went one step further. Perhaps the NPC walks from his or her house, appearing at dawn every morning, to walk over to their stand to sell their wears, and then retreats in the night? That way they're not standing at their cart 24/7 in sun and rain desperately waiting for ever last sale. Or perhaps you're walking around and two NPCs randomly decide to talk to eachother... about their favorite cake rescipe, or that low carb diets will kill you....
so my main question is... how are NPCs being used to add imersion so that the world feels like its being lived in by more then PCs
Not all NPC's are going to be just standing in one place. A good example is the one given....
http://www.kmtdesigns.com/hjfaq/index.php?action=artikel&cat=15&id=15&artlang=en&highlight=NPC
As for normal NPC"s that players may "need" to play a game... like NPC healers or armorsmiths....etc. Making them vanish just because the game may decide it is nighttime could be a bad thing for people. People need to be able to play... and not just for half of the time. I know some games do it... even Dragonrealms does it in Shard. But time will tell for sure.
HJ-Royce
Simutronics Staff (GM)
http://www.play.net/hj/
I understand the possession thing, and quest NPCs running up to greet you, and thats definently one of the major pluses to HJ. I played WISH (*Cries*) and they did this, and it led to the single most incredible time i've ever had in an RPG of any kind. Even tabletop.
Anyways, I'm talking about the NPCs that are supposed to make the world feel alive. The people that are just "living" in the world. Alot of MMOs have the functionary NPCs (healers, vendors, etc...) and then the quest NPCs, and then no one else, or a couple people standing around randomly.
I'm talking about the NPCs that serve no other purpose then to make the world feel populated.
I understand the possession thing, and quest NPCs running up to greet you, and thats definently one of the major pluses to HJ. I played WISH (*Cries*) and they did this, and it led to the single most incredible time i've ever had in an RPG of any kind. Even tabletop.
Anyways, I'm talking about the NPCs that are supposed to make the world feel alive. The people that are just "living" in the world. Alot of MMOs have the functionary NPCs (healers, vendors, etc...) and then the quest NPCs, and then no one else, or a couple people standing around randomly.
I'm talking about the NPCs that serve no other purpose then to make the world feel populated.
Just... filler people then. Got ya.
This is beyond my scope to answer. I know it may seem simple, but I'm unaware of anyone from onsite saying this is happening or not.
Hence, I can only give you info that they have already released, anywhere. (for the most part)
HJ-Royce
Simutronics Staff (GM)
http://www.play.net/hj/
I completely agree about the "non-role" NPCs living in the world to fill it out more. Think Morrowind type NPCs for this idea. Many of them were involved in quests, either large or small. But many, many more were just living in the world. They had names, perhaps were in their homes or in the open wandering. They had unique looks and different schedules.
It might be a bit more of a strain on the rendering engine to add more NPCs to the world, but it adds to the immersiveness factor in a big way.
I'm curious too. I plan on playing a paladin, and as such... what role are gods/religion gonna play in the world if any?
I am the one and only God, and accept offerings of virgins and Suwari pelts.
Er... anyways. The gods have always been a major focus and have always had influence in the worlds created by Simu. I'd expect the same within HJ. In gemstone who you worship as a cleric heavily effects the look of your spells cast, and even whether you're more effective against the living or the undead. There was even a 4 year long good vs. evil event that was overseen by several gods as they pitted the players against each other. (It may have lasted longer then that. I don't remember exactly since I was never involved in it, as my character tends to be very insane and neutral.)
How they'll play a role in HJ though. I'm unsure, but I'm sure that information will come to light eventually once the Devs have it finalized.
GM Illuminatis
World Builder
Hero's Journey
My wife pointed this game out to me a few weeks ago in a picture from PC Gamer. I started looking at it and all I really would like to know is About when can we expect to be able to play
. I'm nursing a WoW account but MMORPG's have really started to turn off because of the lack of any real dynamic interaction. I can only do so many "go kill 10 rats and bring me their Tails" type "quest" (calling kill task quest is just silly)
There are some really great persistant worlds for NWN that just completely outclass any MMORPG, is this the type of world dynamic we can expect from HJ? It is much easier for a NWN world because it has a much smaller capacity for players (I think 64 is the max in a game) and the people behind the game are usually 5 to 10. Pretty good ratio there. HJ is really pushing the GM interaction and I am hoping for it to work out.
To compare, in WoW when I first "spawn" I get a welcome message and kill task (usually killing wolves or something minor like that) in return for a ripped up pair of boots. In NWN I found I get a very rich backstory and history right off to bat. (In the better persistant worlds ) and I have yet to come across a whole lot of kill task. (I think it is because kill task are very easy to make - heck even I can make them - and most of the community wouldn't go for it and move onto a more elaborite world) I know if I played a Mod and I got a kill task and a ripped up pair of boots for a reward I would shut it off and find another one.
So enough with my rant, sorry if this question has been answered already, this is a huge thread. When can we play
The planned release is this year. BUt as time goes on we'll get a more "exact" date released.
As for Go-Kill-10-Rats... lather, rinse, repeat, I think that type of "quest" is illegal in HJ. Our quest team is filled with some very ingenious and creative ladies and gentleman. Just reading some of their hello messages here on www.mmorpg.com proves that.
What I like though, is seeing them in action. Great people, all of them.
As for backstory, our lore is, if you ask me, second to none. As such, it's something I read about once a month. It's a great read.
You can find bits and pieces of our lore that have been released through the various interviews here on this site. (not to mention some great screenshots)
And let me just say, I happy your wife noticed the article! Thank her for me and I hope to see you in HJ.
Welcome to the www.mmorpg.com HJ forums Torak.
HJ-Royce
Simutronics Staff (GM)
http://www.play.net/hj/
We are stationed in Heidelberg, but Ramstein and Kaiserslauten are only an hour or so away so we have been there.
I know Wanago golf course, but I can't say I have had the pleasure of ever playing on it. I wasn't into to golf at all while I lived there, but I have played some on the US golf course here.
Humility before Honor.
The descriptions I've read so far often refer to CoH/CoV when describing the instancing in the game. There was also reference to instancing general or world areas such as EQII did. In your opinion are these descriptions accurate of the current status of this game. I've played a variety of MMO's if you think there is a better comparison as to the amount of instancing vs. static world please describe. I know this is a hot topic, for me it's just a balancing issue. I like instancing, but it can be easily overdone. Personally the worst instancing I've experienced was EQII zones where you had to LFG in soandso3 and you entered soandso2 but found out it got changed to soandso1 when you weren't paying attention. Just made for confusion and really took you out of immersion when your trying to figure out which zone of 5 your other 5 party members are in.
The system of leveling up weapons, some have described like a another character, confuses me some. It reminds me of socket system of just upgrading a weapon, does that seem accurate. How itemcentric is this game? Do you get a weapon at the start and then just level it up to max level. Do you change weapons alot to keep up with your progression through the game. I have tried games, like CoH, where there really wasn't gear but upgrades, is this what is being described for HJ?
From the descriptions of the game so far it appears to be any class and race combo's allowed. From reading this post it appears that you can wear any armor with any class or race as well. How does that work? Are there any restrictions in the game for gear? Would a plate wearing caster have some penalty for the extra armor? Would the caster be equally profiecent with all weapons as a warrior?
There's been a little information about pets. Is there a pet class, for example is the Necro a class that would have a pet? Are there non class specific pets that are usable in combat? I'm curious as I've seen people with 9 pets in SoG (Prequel to Dark and Light) and when you are attacking with small armies at a time it seems to me to deteriorate from the main character I'm leveling and the skill involved in playing him/her. In WoW you get pets that follow you and that's cool and all but only classes get combat pets, which, I'd say is typical for MMO's I've played before.
Finally I enjoy following MMO's and am always looking for that one that I can get into at the start and invest a few years into. From the community support I've witnessed to date I'm definitely going to be trying this game out.
Of the games out there now using instancing City of Hero's comes the closest. A lot of the quest areas will be instanced but we also have common areas where players will not only gather to chat, such as a city or town, but also where there will be open hunting or exploring.
I do remember reading that we would be able to instance these common areas, much like City of Heros or EQ2 do currently, but that was mainly to insure a stable play experience so would be based on the number of players in any one area. I haven't heard what that number is or if we even know yet what it will be.
I'll be honest, I haven't looked at any of the weapon/gear mechanics so I won't comment on the weapons.
Yes any race can be any class though some races will have an easier time with certain classes than others. Again, I haven't looked at armor mechanics so I won't comment on whether or not there will be "class specific" armor or weapon/armor proficency. What I will say is that what your armor looks like - the model that's displayed in the game - will have no bearing on what protection it provides. In other words if you want to be a barbarian warrior in a loin cloth you'll be just as protected as someone running around in full plate. The key here is that the picture drawn on your screen may not reflect the reality of the stats behind it. The idea is that it's your character and you should be able to dress however you want and not have to look like every other warrior out there just because that's the model an artist chose to represent the armor you want to wear.
Again, no information so no comment
Ok, so I've got a question.
Been playing WoW and EQ2 among other things and one of the visual things that seems so stupid and ugly is that when you sheath your sword or shoulder your bow, it just sits on your hip on against your back, looking exactly the same as when you held it in your hand.
Q: I'm just curious if weapons in HJ will go into sheaths, or if they will disappear altogether, or if it'll be much like every other MMO in that the weapon just magically clings to your skin?
"(The) Iraqi people owe the American people a huge debt of gratitude." - George W Bush.
Oh. My. God.
Hello All.
Got a few for the GMs here.
Will beta testers keep their acquired skills, and character names once the game goes live, or will they be reset?
Will beta testers receive any in-game rewards once the game goes live?
Once the game goes live is everyone starting on a clean slate?
Will Simutronics be giving any in-game items for the first batch of players to join the community? Dragonrealms did the "TrailBlazer Badge" I believe.
The Giant Tortoise -
Part I - Will we be able to build upon these great beasts, or is that soley for NPC characters?
Part II - I have a 100 more questions so i'll wait and see what response Part I brings. (ducks)
Leiron
RD
I've never heard of any game allowing Beta testers to carry over their skills and experience. It becomes a huge balance issue, and really isn't fair to others. The only thing I've ever seen done that seperated the the regulars from the beta people was done with CoH. They allowed the pre-order beta people to log into the game a couple days early. Which I thought was good. Because it wasn't enough time to unbalance things, but it was enough to lower congestion around the newbie mobs.
I do like when games allow tester to keep their names once the game goes live. I don't know if we'll be doing that, I'm just a builder, but I'm sure if enough people want it that it may happen.
GM Illuminatis
World Builder
Hero's Journey
Dragon Realms -
I dont know about experience/skills but you they did allow items to stay from beta day 1. I remember having a backpack that you could literally drop a house in to.
Visit the Unofficial Hero's Journey FAQ http://www.kmtdesigns.com/hjfaq
In DR they had a fest while the game was still in alpha/beta. So players were able to keep their items, names, a trail blazzer badge and exp. On average there were only 20 - 40ish people on at a given time before they opened the door for AOL users. So the beta was not all that big. Never heard anyone complain about this either.
What types of GUI menus/guild support features are planned for implementation at this point?
I.e. Guild halls? Guild member tracking panel? Guild statistics?
"I refuse to engage in a battle of wits with an unarmed person."
There's a vast difference between text gamers and graphical gamers. Greed and jealousy are a lot more rampant in graphical games. There's also a very different maturity level. Also the vocal minority in a game with only a few thousand players won't be heard as loudly. There also wasn't a Simu public forum for people to voice their opinions.
Most people probably didn't even know there was a beta or that the testers got to keep their stuff. Games weren't watched with a microscope back then like they are now. You can't do anything with a game now without it being known, no matter how obscure the game is.
GM Illuminatis
World Builder
Hero's Journey
In a vague nutshell...
If it's part of your clan/guild and you have the permission to do so, you can manipulate it. (with the exception of things like start dates)
Very vague I know. But you get the idea.
I'm sorry I can not list the features at this time.
HJ-Royce
Simutronics Staff (GM)
http://www.play.net/hj/
1. What is the release date for HJ planned for now?
2. What features do clans currently provide for their running, maintenance and socializing in them? (ex: clan halls, housing, clan ranking system, etc.)
3. What is the leveling system? Is it strictly skill based in that you only level up skills individually? Is it skill based and level based? Meaning that you level up skills but at the same time level up your overall level which increases attributes, etc? Is it completely level based with the ability to level up skills only after a certain level has been attained?
4. In some of the screenshots the graphics look better than others. Is this because they were captured on different systems?
5. What's the economy like? What's the basic monetary unit that all other units are divisible by? (ex: ours in America is the penny) In most games it might be the gold coin or the silver coin, etc.
6. Is housing planned to be instanced or noninstanced? Is it planned to be set in specific locations or rather determined by the players/builders to place the housing and to construct it anywhere they want and are able to?
7. What is the basic unit of level advancement in this game and how does it relate to progressing your character? Ex: In most games it is the experience point and it progresses your character in that when you achieve enough of them (enough experience) you may then distribute it to raise skills, attributes, or your overall level.
8. Are there mounts in this game? Like, can we ride horses or other stranger and more exotic mounts in this game? If so, are they the sort of mounts that pop out of your backpack when double-clicked (AC2/WOW) or are they the kind that are persistent and stick with you until you put them in stables or log off or the like?
"Put your foot where your mouth is." - Wisdom from my grandfather
"Paper or plastic? ... because I'm afraid I'll have to suffocate you unless you put this bag on your head..." - Ethnitrek
AC1: Wierding from Harvestgain
http://www.kmtdesigns.com/hjfaq
Visit the Unofficial Hero's Journey FAQ http://www.kmtdesigns.com/hjfaq