Ryzom

how does one find out when / where these events will be happening? the big ones, or maybe even the smaller ones.

Pay attention to the Mesage of the Day when you log in. Check the Saga forum. Listen to Region chat There's often, if not always(?) a lead up played out by certain characters in Region, inviting people to join in. If you ever hear Wormbreath or Oba, for example .... run!

so i'm reading this timeline... and these "major events"... do they actually change each server? or is it assumed that the same thing happened... like they took over a town? or what? i'm lost as to how players can affect the storyline, yet they seem to keep the servers the same. I'm refering to the major events.

The story on each server is practically the same, but the outcome is in some cases very different. The best example of diverging outcomes was the Temple Wars; Arispotle had a tie with Karavaneers and Kamists erecting two temples to each of their gods, on Leanon if I'm not mistaken the Kamists won over the Karavaneers with an additional temple. (these temples are permanent features now and are important points of pilgrimage and learning, when one chooses to allign themselves to a cult and in the distribution of rewards.

Perhaps not considered as a 'major' event although it changed politics and 'progressed' the story, the Tryker elections for governership is another example of players affecting the world. Different results on all servers; Denen Toenen (euhm, or something like that) got elected Governor on Aniro, Lady Ailan on both Leanon and Arispotle; although we ended with a tie on Arispotle, Lady Ailan and Deputy Rehn dividing responsibilities and Lady Ailan taking up the position of Governess (or is that still Governor?). All of this by the players voting.

Generally I'd say the stories remain pretty close, only details are noticeable for now. Minor events vary a lot more; not all shards have the same events at all times it seems. But who knows, perhaps things can change soon(tm), it would just take a few succesive events with a big enough impact to diverge the storylines immensly.

Oh, since Jamela seems to have forgotten to mention it: also keep an eye on the Atys Chroncles webpage.

sounds very interesting... this elections... and the difference it makes... what difference does it make? i mean so they got elected, i heard that npcs will talk differently about the government, but how does it affect the players?

I'll use 'may' for this as I'm not 100% sure if this is how it would work.

Different leaders had different character traits, different ideaologies and desires, a different vision. We know for one that unlike the former Governor Still Wyler who had very close ties to King Yrkanis and the Matis people, Lady Ailan respects the current alliance between the Tryker and Matis people, yet has a drive to try and befriend the Fyros Empire, possibly trying to reinstate the Old Alliance between those two people. Add to this that Lady Ailan's grandmother drove back the Matis during Jinovitch's reign of expansionism and you'll see she doesn't hold the Matis highly in esteem yet knows the Alliance benefits her people. I can't really recall what Denen Toenen stood for on Aniro, but I doubt it's the same. (same characters had the same or almost the same traits over all shards)

It all depends on what will happen in future events, but we can assume that these different leaders 'may' possibly react differently to them.

The easiest example, since I talked on Ailan's stance towards the Matis earlier:
Suppose King Yrkanis gets murdered by a Goo weapon/betrayed and imprissoned/lost in his winecellar and the Matis would rekindle their Imperialistic ways under another leader, it 'may' be that Lady Ailan reconsiders the Alliance . Certainly if the Matis population would agree.
Under Still Wyler, if it were to come to a war somewhere, the Trykers 'may' have tried to right the wrong done to King Yrkanis, but probably not if his people conscented to these 'new' old ways.

How it does affect the players? Well it could be possible that in such a case they'd activate the Civ vs Civ mechanics, so players can fight for their nation, or support a side, much like the K/K conflict.
It will also have an effect on future events no doubt, which will in turn have different effects again that will affect yet other events, .....

Aaah, speculation.