Homin Aging...

[beaut666]

I would love to have an aging option. I used to make several of my characters in other MMO's be of the older persuasion.
I think it would be cool to have it as a choice, even if just comsmetically.
Beau

[jamela]

Olca, I like the way you think .

... Honestly I can't see aging and non aging working on the same server.

Absolutely not.

...As to the notion of permadeath, I don't think that would be a cool thing if it was a forced ingame mechanic. Besides, who says a homin can't reach an age of say 300 - 400 years?

I think in a roleplaying game where legendary and historic people in the lore aged and passed on, character aging and death are requirements. And I agree that in a fantasy setting the natural lifespan of a character is something that can be played around with the same as everything else. My thinking is that as your character begins to grow older and weaker then as a player you think of having a child and starting a new character. Your character's child could benefit from the parents' lineage and inherit items and knowledge, obviously, a heavy bias in Fame, and perhaps some bias in learning skills as your old character teaches the child.

...The NPCs running around that look older are simply those that came before us to the new lands and did their part in helping to build a new home for us and them. And there isn´t any set age of "now you go of to the new lands", some simply went on their way later in life, other earlier.
Then as they aged they settled down as merchants, stable "boys", Guards and whatever...

I like the idea of keeping your old aging characters as long as you like, looking out for their offspring, but I also had the notion that you could retire them (to free up slots, for example) at which point they could become one of the NPCs around town as you mention. I originally fancied the thought of Jamela being one of Yrkanis' royal guard, then later one of the trainers somewhere in Majestic Gardens, but she was never really that strong or bright so a much less prominent role like a wandering forager for the Green Seeds would be much more appropriate, and I'd love that too . Positions in NPC society should be "rewards" for achievements whilst a player character. And gradually they age and are replaced, naturally. This type of feature could make game lore come alive.

[jamela]

...A lot of people remains here because they have reached their levels, and now they are making other things different than grind; they make politics, trading inter-guild, battles, events, and so on.

If that people want return to grind, then they create a new char. I'm sure that, if their chars dead, a lot of players will simply leave the game.

From a idealistic RP point of view is very pretty, age and death, but from a gaming point of view is, IMHO, a bad idea.

Unfortuntely power has a lot to do with MMOs. A lot of players focus on achievement and like to get every advantage they can get to be good at what they want to do in game. Getting the best weapons and armor or more players learn the combat skill lines that are considered 'best' then just going for the one they like the idea of best. ...

I have already voiced in the Off-Topic section my views on how the mmorpg is not what it says on the label, and your posts, Mithur and Ashling, seem to illustrate what I said there. Mmorpgs at the moment seem to me to be levelling games rather than roleplaying games, and I think aging is only really appropriate to a roleplaying game. I'm no expert on the genre, I've little experience, but from what little I have heard of "A Tale In The Desert", that was a mmorpg which came closer than any other to being a roleplaying game.

[ashling]

I have already voiced in the Off-Topic section my views on how the mmorpg is not what it says on the label, and your posts, Mithur and Ashling, seem to illustrate what I said there. Mmorpgs at the moment seem to me to be levelling games rather than roleplaying games, and I think aging is only really appropriate to a roleplaying game. I'm no expert on the genre, I've little experience, but from what little I have heard of "A Tale In The Desert", that was a mmorpg which came closer than any other to being a roleplaying game.

I don't think worrying about the game balance of changes to the game is strictly a non roleplayer view. After all look at the players who say that neutral in unfairly balanced/restricted compared to Kamists or Karvaners, the ones that jump forward in my mind the most are roleplayers.

[jamela]

I don't think worrying about the game balance of changes to the game is strictly a non roleplayer view.....

Of course not, I was referring to the way that players are motivated in their choices, and how the design of the game affects that. Nothing about balance.

[ashling]

Of course not, I was referring to the way that players are motivated in their choices, and how the design of the game affects that.

Ahh ok. My mistake, sorry.

[katriell]

A homin's lifespan would be about 11-16 years, RL time. Even if there were temporal character aging implemented already, we wouldn't be noticing it.

The source of this information, and why the whole aging idea is moot unless you plan on playing for a decade or so - or, unless they rework the way Atys and homins work.

[jamela]

Umm, actually, I have been here for 28 months which makes Jamela about 12 years older than when she started, which I always felt to be about age 20. Ryzom was originally planned out for an 8 year lifespan - 40 homin years - so it isn't really so inappropriate to discuss this since Jamela would be about 60 by then and probably not charging into kitin nests anymore. That's all we are doing, anyway, splashing ideas around about how aging might be implemented in general.