Istaria Introductory Review/Tutorial

Hey everyone,  I put together a little tutorial/review video yesterday, specifically tailored for prospective new players of the game. I'm a new player myself, but I've been researching the game a ton, as well as asking question on the forums, so this video is kind of a culmination of what I've learned so far.

 

Check it out here.

 

In case you don't feel like watching the video, here's a little bulletpoint of some of what's covered in it:

Istaria is an mmorpg that I'd say falls in a more "niche" category of the genre. It's a huge, seamless world with -

1. Non-instanced gameplay.

2. Extensive class variety (28 biped adventure classes in total, 7 being base, 21 being prestige/unlockable).

3. 11 different biped (humanoid) races to choose from.

4. The unique and popular Dragon race (along with their own classes 1 adventure, 2 crafting).

5. Ability to switch classes on the same character.

6. Multiclassing (which is the ability to mix and match "masterable" skills from one class to the next as you see fit, leading to a very varied experience).

7. An in-depth crafting system with 19 biped crafters (many of which are prestige), as well as 2 dragon specific crafting classes.

8. A player-driven economy, where crafting actually matters.

9. Open world, non-instanced player housing, where over 200 different structures can be built for bipeds alone. This includes guild-specific plot areas where guild cities can be built.

10. Dragon specific housing, in the form of underground lairs, where over 150 of their own specific structures can be built.

11. A pure pve experience, meaning that the game isn't balanced or (in my opinion) trivialized by frequent nerfing and strict balancing. You can truly be a powerful character in this game, with enough time and effort. And in the case that you are interested in pvp, the game does feature an arena, so the option is there.

12. A tight knit, family-oriented community, with a ton of helpful people.

13. A hybrid business model with 3 different ways to play the game.

  -The first being a free-2-play model, where you're restricted to the human race, one character slot, no dragon play, no plot for housing, and 10 concurrent consignment slots (a method for selling to other players). Other than that, it's all fair game, and to my knowledge, there isn't even a cash shop in the game. That's a huge plus, in my opinion.

  -The second method is a 10 dollar a month plan, where you are allowed 5 character slots, all of the races (as well as Dragons), no plot, and 5 times the number of concurrent consignment slot (50).

  -The third is your typical 15 dollars a month plan, and it includes 7 character slots, 1 housing/lair plot, 150 concurrent consignment slots, as well as the ability to use account upgrades (such as adding an extra set of character slots, another plot, etc). They also offer 6 month and 12 month plans for a lesser cost, overall.

I hope you all enjoy the video, and if you have any questions about the game, feel free to let me know.

You can check the game out, or learn more at -

www.istaria.com

www.istaria.wikia.com

www.istaria-guides.com

http://sharpnetwork.net/istaria/

~Thanks Garfonso for all the contributing information!