I opened up Ryzom and played for 4 hours yesterday to learn the basics, I am currently a 27 matis fighter. From what I have gathered so far, the resources necessary to progress through character advancement (at an enjoyable rate) can be attained only by the use of almost all skill trees. However, if a player was to invest in all skill branches, he would be investing a huge amount of time and would progress at the pace of a snail. It seems that multi-skilling is a large time drain, but is necessary if players are to enjoy the game.
From my perspective it is clear that Ryzom's open-ended skill system is a mechanism created only to represent the developer's goals for character development. In the current situation, those who move forward the fastest will be those that specialize, and specifically specialists working together.
To illustrate this concept with a little more detail, this hypothetical group would be divided into two sections: gatherers (killing monsters/quartering is included) and crafters. It seems that the gatherers need equipment and produce resources, while the crafters need resources and produce equipment. With individuals specializing in each area the overall process of advancing skills is streamlined and in my opinion its speed can be increased dramatically. If you think about it, it's really is quite basic, what you are doing is just giving what your fellow players need to them directly (and this process can be easily accomplished with a good guild structure). This way, fighters can focus on fighting, and crafters can focus on crafting, because they provide each other with the things they need to continue advancing.
That is the general philosophy of the Guild I wish to form. Multi-skilling is not discouraged, and in fact part of the general idea is that it will be much easier to advance a second skill (using less time in the long run) once you have specialized in one area first. Also, I am not a power gamer, I simply know that I will find it more enjoyable to understand the game and play it skillfully, and want to do so with like-minded people. Ryzom seems to possess a plethora of interesting features that will only be accessible later on, and I want to get to those interesting features ASAP.
This guild will have a total membership of 20 or less players who play 2-6 hours a day consistently. This guild will be selective in choosing its membership. I'm looking for people that are: mature, intelligent, passionate, and most importantly: NICE!
Players who share my perspective of this game and who want to lead the type of guild I have outlined, please contact me. If you are such a person or you simply want to be part of the guild as a member, reply here. You can also contact me via IM using:
AIM: PinFX
MSN: moolahh@hotmail.com
I have a 20-slot ventrilo server (voice chat) that will be available for use by guild members 24/7.
Thanks for reading ^^ I look forward to meeting some cool people in this interesting MMORPG universe
note: People who believe role-playing is necessary to enjoy an MMORPG need not apply! I'm only interested in the game and think it is too technical for RPing anyways. I would prefer to socialize with my fellow guildmates as the interesting people they are in real life!