Before you reply, I really don't want to cause a flame war here. I am basically wondering if the fine peeps at Nevrax are still using this for special events as they did during Beta? I always had a lot of fun back then... Oh yeah, a lot of...
For all the people wondering what I am talking about, David Cohen Corval has explained quite a bit about it on MMHell some years ago. How time flies by...
[url]http://www.mmhell.com/news/1/773.html]MMHELL[/url]The RAID engine The art of mass combat
David Cohen Corval Creative Director on The Saga of Ryzom and CEO of Nevrax
One of the USPs (Unique Selling Points) of The Saga of Ryzom is undoubtedly our RAID engine ( Real-Time Army Invasion Deployment) which can depict up to 255 creatures on screen at once, and even more if you have a particularly powerful machine!
While many games pit large groups of players against one hardcore creature, we are pitting masses against masses. I think the reason that it hasn't been done before is that building an MMORPG in itself is a big challenge and closer to madness than anything else I know, which means it's good to minimize the risks. But I think after the release of Ryzom in September we'll see more games adopting similar features and more players looking for this mass combat experience.
Our aim here at Nevrax is to push the MMORPG genre forward in as many ways as possible and move away from the conventional types of gameplay that we've all seen before in the online world. The fast-paced evolution of gaming hardware has helped us no end in this, because we wouldn't be able to do the same things with the graphics cards of four years ago. People are starting to realize that MMORPGs are not just about having lots of people online at once, but having lots of communities online together. The mass combat of Ryzom will help forge many communities within the game.
This way everyone will gain a bigger role in the game, because mass combat isn't just about the fighters, it's also about the non-violent characters that are helping to fuel it and give it some means and purpose. Crafters and healers are the people who will give the fighters the advantage, with their spells and weapon crafting. Also, people will be needed to provide specific information on your enemies (who might be creatures like the kitins, or other guilds and races) where their weak points are and what they are after.
Yea, me too ! I hate these evil little cretures ! 
