Ryzom

I'm a long time WoW player who gave up. The problem? I enjoy small party groups and world exploration, not endless 40 player raiding in the same dungeons over and over. The static nature of WoW really started to bug me. Look at a forest and you see 10 bears patrolling back and forth like roving targets constantly regenerating.

In SOR, I'm still on newbie island and so far all is new and exotic. I'm not into it enough yet to commit. I'd really like to know about these issues especialy if your a former or current WoW player:

*Is SOR's emphasis on small party quests at all levels? How soloable is it?
*My understanding is that the quest framework in SOR is not all that extensive. Just what is the emphasis in the game and what exactly are world events?
*WoW is the ultimate example of a static world. Is SOR better in this regards?

Also in WoW there was a lot of info floating around on the best character "builds", in otherwords, how you develop your character. Could anyone point me at similar info for SoR?
In SoR can a character be reset and still maintain xp to redevelop that character?

If anyone cares to constrast the 2 games, I'm all ears.
Thanks!

huntn wrote:*Is SOR's emphasis on small party quests at all levels? How soloable is it?

Also in WoW there was a lot of info floating around on the best character "builds", in otherwords, how you develop your character. Could anyone point me at similar info for SoR?

In SoR can a character be reset and still maintain xp to redevelop that character?

You can solo skills such as melee and elemental all the way to maximum (level 250). Heal obviously requires a team. Afflictions are soloable if you do them in conjunction with elemental for example, but alot easier in a team. Effective teams can range from 2 man to 9 man (max).

There is no ultimate build in ryzom. As what you level does not cap any of youre other skills. IE if you choose to become a melee warrior, and level your melee skill up to level 250, you can then decide to level your magic/dig/craft just the same as if you were starting a new character. You cannot limit yourself.

No its not possible to reset and still have your xp.

Cant compare to WoW im afraid, was never tempted

I've played WoW. Here's some differences that are noticable to me.

1. There is no class structure, other than what individual players choose to impose upon themselves. Some folk really want "to be a healer" so they work hardest on that skill line, some want to "be a nuker" so they work hardest on those skills..etc etc. Anyone can be anything as long as they're willing to put in the effort. If you decide you want to do something else for awhile, just start doing it. You dont lose what you've gained, you just gain more variation.

In WoW, the world is truely static. Mobs wander like targets on a track. In SoR, the world is organic. The herd mobs tend to act like herd mobs and preditors tend to act like preditors. There will be predictible "paths" that mobs tend to travel but no where near like WoW.

In NPE there are "quests" in the common sense of that term. those dont exist on the mainland. There are missions on mainland but they are different. There are no item or xp payouts. Most missions are simple deliveries or -kill x # of z type mob and are for fame/faction or "encyclopedia" entries.

This next is not intended to insult anyone and is simply my
opinion, possibly poorly worded.

Long term play in SoR is not about having your hand held and being guided from point A to point Z as can be the case in "quest driven" games.
The "point" in SoR is to find your own niche while growing, exploring and having fun.

The game is as, or more, solo friendly than any others I've played. If you are not the type that has to have mobs that give max possible xp as your only huntable, then you can solo to your heart's desire... unless you have your heart set on being a world famous healer... then you'll need to team up.
Teams and teaming tends to be much more flexible in SoR than in other games. With there being no set "classes" every team will differ in skill spread and tactics. Sometimes, you'll team up and have a very well skilled healer and you can hack and slash till your bags are full of mats. Sometimes you'll have a team of "distributed healers" where you'll each heal the other as needed and so on and so forth. It does make for a much more interesting fight when you actually have to adjust your tactics to your team's skill sets, rather than having class A in slot B and everyone doing exactly what they did last hunt and every preceeding hunt.

All things considered, it may help if you think of SoR as a land to explore and a place to grow your character as you make friends and develop abilities while creating a place for yourself in the community. And if you become a follower of either the karavan or the kami, maybe even a place to do battle.

Anyhoo, I hope some of that came close to what you are asking.

Pug and Run,
Thanks for the info! I like the concept of exploring much more than the quest grind. In WoW I almost felt like it was a race to see how many quests you could finish in an evening.

What else bugged me was that there was practically no real exploration and discover in WoW. 8 out of 10 times, someone in the group knows exactly where to go and exactly what to do so I'd just tag along. Of course this is the delima of all MMOs and the so-called corporate knowledge of its content. In one of the exotic instance locations in WoW, I should have been standing there in awe at the new scenery, but instead had to hustle along with the group who knew exactly where they were going. The only way around this is to pick a dedicated group who has never player higher than you and really go exploring...

huntn wrote: In SoR can a character be reset and still maintain xp to redevelop that character?

There is no need to reset or "respec" a character. You can't change your appearance so if you want a new face or something, you have to make a new character. But in terms of stats, there's no need to "respec" -- you can start levelling any "level 1" skill you haven't levelled yet at any time, and just ignore the skills you have already levelled up if you are tired of them. There is no limit to how many skill levels you can gain, so there's really no need to "re-roll."

C

huntn wrote: What else bugged me was that there was practically no real exploration and discover in WoW. 8 out of 10 times, someone in the group knows exactly where to go and exactly what to do so I'd just tag along.

Be prepared for veterans here to want to run you around and see 100 things at once. I know I'm guilty of it as well, so if you end up in that situation just say so and we'll all be happy to let you take as much time as you want.

Exploring here is incredibly rewarding- but that's because it can be very dangerous and challenging. Go at it at your own pace and just let anyone who tries to rush it know that, there are no quests to complete and therefore no reason to rush.

We are a very helpful community but on the downside that can often mean we try to do too much for new players that they might want to do on their own. If you really enjoy the exploration, just limit yourself to asking questions of the veterans but work on accomplishing it on your own, or with other new players.

I expect you'll enjoy your stay here greatly

chessack wrote:You can't change your appearance so if you want a new face or something, you have to make a new character.

False. Well, partly. You cannot change your physical size such as height and weight or the form of your face (mask if Zorai) but on the mainland, you will find male and female hairdressers and tatooers, who will be more than happy to redecorate your face (or mask) and fix you up a new hairdo.

One thing that ruins WoW isn't even the game itself, it's thottbot. Thottbot took the exploration and enigmatic mystery out of the enormous world.

sitius wrote:One thing that ruins WoW isn't even the game itself, it's thottbot. Thottbot took the exploration and enigmatic mystery out of the enormous world.

I don't I know I was GUILTY! First thing I did when starting a new quest in WoW was to look it up on Thottbot. I was on the treadmill and there was no time for exploration. Hopefully I can avoid this attitude in SOR. Is a Wiki being developed for SOR with mission info?

sehracii wrote:Be prepared for veterans here to want to run you around and see 100 things at once. I know I'm guilty of it as well, so if you end up in that situation just say so and we'll all be happy to let you take as much time as you want.

The first time I ran through Westfall, West of Stormwind City (WoW) I was lead by the nose by a well meaning higher level friend who just ran me through 10 quests in an hour. I remember feeling and why am I doing this? It got to the point where I wanted no one higher than 4 levels (above me) helping me. Like what's the point?