NEW PLAYER! Question about character creation.

Alesondria

Hello and warm greetings hundreds of my new friends!

   I just discovered Arcaea and joined the game yesterday morning. Coming from a background that enjoys a 3D ORPG for years I have had time to hone my RP skills on the keyboard and became almost instantly curious about this game. Followed after by mild excitement. I do have 0 experience with MUD gaming, however. The thousands of commands you all find so easy to know and use will take this slow typer a bit of long hard practice! But I am having a lot of fun asking questions, learning, chatting in tells with kind folks, and slowly walking about the road reading the descriptions of what is around me. I think I can actually get into this kind of free form open sandbox RPG!

  But I suppose you came to read my question, hmmm? Well simply but I know this is a hardcore lore centered role-playing community. I tried to investigate on my own but there is seriously so much to read (manual and lore-wise) my head is starting to hurt. Races and Classes. From a generalized and stereotypical standpoint of in-character RP how are they described; treated; what is their demeanor; professional motives. I was also looking for what skills each class has and a bit about them. If you guys might be willing to help out a new player with your own words and ideas as well as links to the 'rule book' I would be very happy.

  I made a Siren druidess because i enjoy druids in D&D, which is my measuring branch, but found out they may not be what kind of character I will wanna play both mechanically and role-play wise. I was under the assumption they were casters as well as shifters. Think I read somewhere I can change my race if I die and my class. If not I can always start again. I'd just like to get a 'feel' for the classes and races before I commit totally. Guess I had my little test run and passed it. Looking forward to being a small part of the community.

-Jena

P.S. I almost didn't pass the test because of how 'un-like my thinking' the script game commands are. I will no doubt be a total novice for a year or more, so if you meet me IC have mercy.

P.P.S. Edited spelling to make me not look like the poor speller I am!

Sena

Alesondria said:

Races and Classes. From a generalized and stereotypical standpoint of in-character RP how are they described; treated; what is their demeanor; professional motives. I was also looking for what skills each class has and a bit about them. If you guys might be willing to help out a new player with your own words and ideas as well as links to the 'rule book' I would be very happy.

http://wiki.achaea.com/Category:Classes and http://wiki.achaea.com/Category:Adventurer_races should help a lot, as well as just reading HELP <class>, HELP <skill>, and HELP <race> in-game. If you aren't familiar with the wiki, it can be found at http://wiki.achaea.com/ (there's also a link at the top of the forums), it has a lot of useful information and lore. Keep in mind that Achaea is constantly changing, so some things on the wiki may be slightly out of date.

In general, you have a lot of freedom in how you play a race/class. Like in real life, your profession and physical attributes don't determine your personality, and two different communities of the same race can have entirely different beliefs, cultures, and even histories. There aren't (usually) any stereotypes you'll be expected to follow.

Alesondria said:

I made a Siren druidess because i enjoy druids in D&D, which is my measuring branch, but found out they may not be what kind of character I will wanna play both mechanically and role-play wise. I was under the assumption they were casters as well as shifters.

Druids do use magic, mostly related to the forests (look at the Groves skill), but not the general sort of casting that you'd find in D&D. Also, the Metamorphosis skill is about spiritual transformations, not changing your physical body. You don't actually become a wolf, for example, you just let a wolf spirit into your body and use wolf-like abilities.

And yes, you can change your race once for free (read HELP REINCARNATION), and if you're still level 10 or lower, you don't need to die in order to reincarnate. You can change your class at any time with QUIT CLASS and then talking to Certimene in Delos.

Kazu

Welcome to the game!

Slightly long post incoming, but I'll try to answer most of the questions you have. Honestly, before I make new characters I like to think about what I want to do with them. Generally, there are three categories of play that most people fall in, roleplay, bashing (PvE grinding), and PvP. It's very possible to do all of them, and often some people do. Determining what your main focus is will help you pick the best class for you. However, this isn't a requirement if you want to just go out and experience the classes as you dabble in everything. I'm going to put a brief description of each class later in the post.

If you want roleplay:
-Any class can fit here. Just pick a roll that you think would be interesting and roll with it. There's literally limitless potential for every class because it's based on how you handle things.
- I'd recommend joining an aligned city because they -typically- tend to be more hardcore RP oriented. That's not to say that Cyrene and Hashan can't have roleplay, but I think you'll find a more...established and more intense roelplay experience in Targossas, Mhaldor, Eleusis, and potentially Ashtan. That kind of experience isn't for everyone, because such roleplay can take significant investment on your part to build a role and result in you literally dying for your beliefs. Choose the path you think will best fit you.

If you want Bashing/Hunting/PvE
-Again, all classes can do this, but some will make you feel like pulling your hair out by the sheer grind.
-Monk, Runewarden, Magi, and Blademaster are some of the more popular bashing classes. All are non-aligned and can join any city. Paladin, Infernal, and the forestal classes are also decent, but they can come with some roleplay restrictions.

If you want PvP:
-PvP can really be broken up into group or 1v1 fighting. The current trend seems to be everything moving to a more group based combat system based upon raiding other cities, but 1v1 can be and is still done. All classes -can- be used for PvP, but naturally they have different skill and learning curve requirements.
-PvP is really broken up into 2 different routes, damage or afflictions. Damage is generally the easier route to learn, and requires less technical knowledge of how game curing works. It is also easier to avoid death from it and it can become quite hard to kill someone who is experienced at the upper levels with straight damage (right @Exelethril...lol).
-Classes with the hardest learning curves are Jesters, Serpents, and Bards.

Races are less important for classes with the statpack system. You can effectively choose between a grouping of stats to best suit whatever class you want to choose. That's not to say that some aren't better suited for some classes, because they are. However, it's really only important if you want to min/max your stats for the biggest advantages. If you want to do this, you'll want to look at the individual stats for each race and compare them to your class requirements. Strength determines how much physical damage you do during attacks, dexterity is for dodging in PvP and for Serpent combat, Constitution affects how much overall health and endurance you have. Intelligence determines magical damage and mana/willpower numbers. Here's a general breakdown of classes. Note, this is -very- general and is just briefly touching on each subject.

Melee Classes

Monk
This class has a main focus based on combos. As a monk, you will be attacking with combos of one kick and two punches to deal damage to your opponents limbs in an attempt to break them, setting up a finisher move. You also gain the ability to manipulate your body and mind, allowing you further control of your overall defenses and enabling you to damage your opponnents based on intelligencce. Think of Eastern martial arts when you picture this class. They are probably the best PvE class in the game. Monks are -very- good in raid situations and are one of the most sought after classes in the game because of it.

Runewarden
The main focus of Runewarden is to deal damage and afflictions using a pair of swords or battleaxes to either disable the opponent for a finisher or just kill them with straight damage. The Runelore skillset enables you to further enhance yourself by increasing the stats on your weapons and making yourself more damage resistant with the correct runes. You are also able to sketch affliction/damage runes onto a totem that will fire on your enemy when they see it implanted in the ground or being propped up by you. This class is very tanky and is overall good at PvE. Think of your standard Knight-oriented RP for this class. They have a tradeskill to produce weapons/armour.

Infernal
Infernals, like runewardens, focus on dealing damage/afflictions with a pair off weapons. However, they are more focused on accumulating limb damage to set up a finisher move. They can also kill with an affliction setup, but more prefer to go for the limb damage route, as it's easier to pull off. They have the Necromancy skillset which gives them so pretty good infiltration skills and the ability to do some affliction based magic attacks.
This class is less tanky than Runewarden, but still has good defenses due to a combination of armour and necromancy defense resistances. Another knight-rp class. They share the tradeskill with Runewardens.

Paladin
Paladin is another knight class that used duel weapons. It's more of a damage class, as it's easier to prevent your opponent from escaping using a few abilities from the Devotion skillset. They mainly stack on damage to kill you or go for afflictions to disable you long enough to pull off massive damage burst attack. They have rites to assist both yourself and allies. Some rites also hinder and damage enemies. This class is possibly the last overall tanky of the three knight classes, but makes up for it overall with the ability to heal yourself from devotion. They share the tradeskill with Runewardens.

Blademaster
Blademaster focuses on slashing with your named sword along with striking various pressure points in the body to set up afflictions. There are several ways to kill as a blademaster, but the most common is just straight damage. They can also kill people based how much they bleed from attacks. The overall concept of this class is similar to a samurai type class. They are good at PvE, using a variety of stances to modify dps and damage taken.

Druid
Druid is a metamorph based class that allows your -SPIRIT, not body- to morph and share powers that animals would otherwise have. This leads to a lot of utility because of the sheer number of abilities you would have. Druids also have Groves, which allows you to designate a single forest/jungle room as your home Grove. Here, druids gain the ability to store sunlight energy to perform healing and other abilities such as opening portals and the like. Overall, druid has a -ton- of utility combined with some decent PvE utility. They are one of the more difficult PvP classes to play. They also have access to a tradeskill to produce herbs/elixers for money.

Sentinel
Sentinel shares the same metamorphosis benefits as Druids, but has the Woodlore skillset in place of Groves. This grants the Sentinel the ability to summon animal loyals to aid them in PvP. They also gain the ability to lay traps and wield an axe they can throw to deliver afflictions. Sentinel is another difficult pvp class, moreso due to the smaller number of people playing it. It has a huge potential though, as you can deliver afflictions extremely fast coupled with decent melee potential. Think of them as more of an offensive forestal-warrior. They share the same tradeskill as Druids.

Caster

Sylvan
Sylvan fills the Magi-ish roll for the Nature alignment, although Druid can moonlight in this occasionally for Rituals. They share the Groves skillset with druids, but also have Elementalism. This skillset lets them channel the elements to perform fire/air/water/earth based magic. At the high levels, they are able to become one with plants, transforming into a 7-foot plant that can deal some serious physical damage. Overall, they are decent at PvE. Combat is a challenge, as they really only have one main way to kill people that becomes much easier to avoid once you have experience with it. They share the tradeskill with Druids.

Magi
Like Sylvans, Magi has the skillset of  Elementalism. Although, it's minus some of the more Nature based skills that Sylvans have. Think of them as more along the lines of your traditional mage based class. They have the ability of Crystallism, which allows them to spin crystals to set up a number of vibes. Vibes can be used to affect both you and your enemies in PvP situations and have some benefits in PvE and utlity as well. Overall, magi is a good bashing class based on the high dps output. They are much less tanky though, because they can't wear armor. Class defenses make up for this somewhat, but it's still a concern. In PvP, Magi has a ton of potential. However, it's capped by either requiring quite a few damage boosting arteacts or mastery of the retardation vibe to become good with the class. A HUGE note or this class is that Crystallism requires crystals to spin. If you join a House with a Master Crystal, this is free besides a slight time investment. Otherwise, it can become quite expensive to play. The class also has a tradeskill to enchant items with powers, but this is like crystallism. It becomes expensive if you don't join a House with enchanting facilities.

Apostate
Apostates are a group of evil priests that seek to spread their influence throughout the world. Their main abilities focus on Necromancy, as seen with Runewarden, demon-summoning, and staring at an opponent to deliver afflictions. Overall, they are said to be one of the better combat classes due to the overall mass of abilities they have, which includes very good infiltration. They are a bit squishy in terms of defense, but their overall offense makes up for this in PvP scenarios. In terms of PvE, they are average. Their untanky-ness can be a problem, but they can put out an accetpable DPS to make up for it.

Shaman
This class is likened to a voodoo witchdoctor type roll. They are able to deliver curses by simply pointing at a target and share the runelore ability that Runewardens have. They also have the Vodun skill which allows them to make dolls of targets (PVP only) to deliver more afflictions and cause damage. They have perhaps one of the coolest finishing moves in the game, allowing them to shrink and remove the head of their poor victim. Overall, this is one of the tankier caster classes due to the access of their own runes. They also feature a very good hunting DPS, but it can drain willpower very fast.

Alchemist
I'm not overly familiar with this class, but I believe it involves using minerals and elemental magic to deliver afflictions and build up fluid levels in combat to deliver an instakill finisher. They also gain the ability to control a homunculus (created human) that is a copy of themselves to deliver afflictions. From what I recall, they are decent at bashing and can be very tanky due to their class based defenses. Their combat is pretty meh, as it involves a single way to kill someone. This way -can- be very effective, but the class is limited due it really being the only way current developed to kill someone. The class is mostly likened to a scientist (mad or not). I know the research institute in Hashan is getting to be very well known for scientific roleplay involving Alchemists.

Occultist
Occultist is best likened to a cult of worshipers who experiment with otherworldly things to produce a chaotic result. They feature the skills of Occultism, Tarot, and Domination. Tarot is a card-based skillset that has a lot of utility as well as practical use in combat. It can be used for travel, healing, or affliction delivery. Domination is used to form pacts with the major Chaos Lords to gain entities under your control. These entities have many abilities and afford quite a lot of affliction delivery. The final skillset of Occultism is based upon their chaotic experiments and allows you to warp bodies and the like. Overall, their PVE is decent, but they can be untanky. Combat is where occultist really shines, as it's one of the more heavily played raiding classes, for Ashtan at least.

MISC - These classes are unique from the ones above.

Jester
Jester is a weird mix, because it doesn't really rely on one stat really. It shares the tarot skillset with Occultist and has Puppetry, which is very similar to a Shaman's Vodun abilities. However, they also have pranks. This allows you to gain props and use them in a slapstick way to afflict your opponent. The overall combat object of a jester is to either completely disable an opponent by slowing down their motions and them killing them with damage or to disable them just long enough to chop their head off with a Jack in the Box. This class has one of the highest learning curves in terms of combat. Overall, this class is just bad at PvE. They are untanky and their bashing attack has a very low DPS. They do have good travel utility thanks to Tarot. This class does suffer from some stigma due to the utterly silly flavour text of their skills.

Serpent
Serpent is another unique class. It's the only class that relies heavily on Dex, although that's more for combat than PvE. Think of serpents as your typical rogue class. They are capable of easy infiltration and escape, as well as the ability to afflict possibly faster than any other class in the game. As such, they have the highest overall learning curve for combat. As a counter to this, they also have perhaps the fastest movement around the world and are generally extremely fun to play. In terms of PvE, they are very low on the list, but better than Jester at the upper levels. Bashing as a Newbie can be extremely difficult though. No other class really feels the effects at the low level like Serpent. They do have a tradeskill to milk and sell venoms, but this requires you to be in a House with a milking room.

Bard
I put Bard here because I wasn't exactly sure how to class it in the above terms. Technically, it's a physical class that uses a rapier to jab at opponents, but the class features some heavy intelligence use due to keeping up various songs and etc during both PvE and PvP. Overall, this class is just what it sounds like, a showman and performer. That isn't to say it's bad at other things, but it features a high learning curve for combat. The song based abilities can be used to help your allies in battle and to hinder enemies, but bards are one of the first tarrgetted in group battles because of this. In terms of PvE, they are average.

Priest
I put Priest here because I'm unfamiliar with the class and was unsurre of how to class it. Priest is an odd class in that it's the most defensive class in the game. It has a -very- limited offense that makes it extremely hard to kill someone. It shares the devotion ability with Paladins and also features a Healing skillset that allows you to heal others. They also gain the ability to summon an Angel through Spirituality to heal/afflict opponents. Their main PvE, and sometimes PvP, attack involves smashing opponents with a spiritual mace.

I hope these helped you. I'm sure others could easily describe the better. If anyone has other information to add, please correct me where I'm wrong.

@Alesondria. I really recommend joining a House as a new player. Admin are working on a novice program for cities, but Houses are the place for new players to learn and become established in the game now.

Santar

Can't tell if trolling or not, but you have earned my LOL.

Welcome to Arcaea.

Darktalon

Race matters little. There are clans who allow only certain races, but overall other players don't ever make an issue of it.

Siren's do have a negative stereotype as they seem to be the go-to race for people looking to get dirty with each other. In no way are all Siren that way, but that is about the only prejudice I can think of a race having to over come.

Sylvans might better fit your desire, the help files on the website has a run down of every class and their skills. achaea.com/game/helpview . Yeah, I know, more reading, but if you look specifically for that they are fairly brief. It is under section 8 of the list there.

You can delete your character up to level 30 (I think, never looked into it) or a certain amount of playtime. So if you just want to restart, that might be easier for you.

Class and city affiliation are much more defining than your race will be. Then any Order you might join. You don't have to ever join an Order if you don't want. You can also change the other affiliations, but people do tend to remember and will react to you in an (fairly) appropriate RP manner based on where you came from and where you went.

Jakiro

I've always wondered why Druids (and Sentinels) don't just morph into the animal. I think I've been told this was the case before, but then it got changed to the spirit posession thing and I never got to figuring out why the change was necessary. Does anyone know?

ETA:

Oh and welcome to Achaea, Alesondria! The Druids are a great bunch of people, I was part of that house before. If you're still part of that house and class, you should give it another chance. Like Sena said, the casting they do isn't the normal casting you might have been used to (the Sylvan and Mage class are though!) but they do have some spells up their sleeves. The Druids is more of Nature magic, I guess, and most of it comes from controlling their groves to do stuff.

Sena

Jakiro said:

I've always wondered why Druids (and Sentinels) don't just morph into the animal. I think I've been told this was the case before, but then it got changed to the spirit posession thing and I never got to figuring out why the change was necessary. Does anyone know?

Maybe it's easier than explaining how a gopher or eagle are using the same armour, weapons, clothes, etc. as a human, or why an elephant is no stronger or harder to move than a human. And definitely easier than actually changing and balancing what the different forms can and can't do.

Alesondria

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Santar, no I was not 'trolling.' Just saying hello, giving a little info, and asking my question. Thanks for the funny bone mark any rate.

Sena thank you for the links. Those were pretty much what I was hoping to find.

Jakiro thanks for the big welcome, as I am glad to be here.

I would still enjoy reading about how the classes are viewed generally - not just the druid profession. What classes don't like one another and what roles if any the classes play in Arcaean society professionally. I was told they have a big impact on things so would enjoy reading about the rawest views before I role-play. Of course everyone is different and a class/ profession isn't a sole defining conduct to one's personality (I've met some unscrupulous clergy RL for example) but being so new and lost in all this new lore isn't so fun. I'd like some kind of life-preserver to anchor my OOC and IC views to slightly.

I will pick up as I go and RP my lack of common understanding somehow creatively. But a foundation does help since I plan to build a home in Arcaea; literally and metaphorically.

-Jena

P.S. I suppose I will stay my race current but its wonderful to know that little extra bit of lore. I feel as though the race link on the main page does not say enough about each's history. While a sample is sufficient for getting started I really wanted a bigger meal to digest.

Tahquil

Just to tack on what everyone is saying and address the mountains of canon that's been built into the games over the years that might seem a little overwhelming : Don't worry about it.

But when I say don't worry about it I don't mean dismiss everything you have read and be a mega-robo-mhun and blast things with your laserbeams. I mean your lack of knowledge could be one of you greatest tools for initiating RP. Don't know the origins of humanity? Ask your House or citymates, then go out and ask other people. Everyone will have a certain slant on it. Curious about a certain deity? Ask around, they people in game will have more knowledge about them than any helpfile. Over time your knowledge will gradually grow organically instead of trying to jam it all into your head at once. 

Afraid you might look stupid newb? Never. Sometimes it's hard to translate "help I'm totally new to this game and I don't know much" into IG terms but if you say something along the lines of  "my memories aren't fully intact after being reborn" and most people will get the hint. If you're not sure of a syntax you can send whoever your with a tell or message for help.( (Here people usually use '//' to indicate that the information is OOC in nature. example TELL TAHQUIL //What's the command to open doors?. But some people use double brackets like this entire statement is in and some people just preface it with OOC: ))

Hhaos

Sorry, doesn't answer your question but first player from with 40 miles of me I didn't introduce, squeeeeeeee!!!

Sena

Not sure if anyone has explicitly pointed it out yet, but the name of the game is Achaea, not Arcaea.

Mathonwy

What all of these other fine people said. I guess I'd add that it's best to keep an open mind about terms like Good/Evil/Chaos/Nature and what they mean in the context of Achaea. It'll probably save you a headache later on down the road.

As for things like the Mythos/the game's history/etc... it can be a lot easier to get a handle on the game by kind of getting a handle on the game's history and lore as it surrounds the City/House/Class that you've chosen and sort of branch out from there. Otherwise, there's just a sea of names and obscure motivations and dry wars and you don't really have any points of reference and the whole endeavor can just seem oppressively dull.

Also, it's generally kinda easy to spot the true newbies from the alts (well, at least I'm inclined to think so) and most people go easier on the former, so I wouldn't worry too much. Just ask questions and try to have fun!

Alesondria

A big thanks to all who have taken the time to post here.

Hhaos a random google blog sent me to *Achaea (thank you Sena) main sight.But glad it brings you joy, neighbor!

Mathonwy yes. Alignment, or good vs evil, is fun to use but should always be gray. The best villains are splashed with the deeds of a hero to some.

In light of that I have thought about my base character in conjunction with what the abilities do. While the occultist sounds fun I don't wish to play tormented or insanity. Sylvan sounded equally good save for the Grove ability... I just can't seem to hold a conceptual grasp to those two forces. But I have come up with a loose morality, demeanor, and idealization of the very basics for my character. Looking at that and what I would enjoy along with what would fit the character I'll be switching my class to a Runewarden.

I plan on completing the tutorial as a druid then seeking out someone to RP train me in the class. For those interested I'll likely post a loose -something- IC on the threads about her. Might even try to do it like a journal kinda. Anywho, I do hope this thread will find its way into the screen of other newbies with similar questions.

-Jena