The beautiful zorai,
Mysterious and gentle creatures of the land.....When I first arrived in Ryzom I made a matis character..mainly because I feel more comfortable roleplaying an online version of 'ME'.
I immediately made friends in the game and enjoyed learning all about Atys....unfortunatly RL issues took all my spare time and I did not log in for several months...but I did keep in contact with the community and started to learn more about the Lore of Ryzom.
When I did get time to login It was just about the time GF took over from Nevrax...and unfortunately many of the folk I knew had left...leaving me with no ties to my Matis character....soooo...
I decided to make a complete change from my normal 'comfort zone' roleplay and created my Zorai.
It was really odd when I logged in with him because everything in Ryzom suddenly seemed different.
I found myself at the Zorai stables with a low population who were more interested in digging and crafting than Outpost control and guild conflict.
It was really a laid back and relaxed game environment I had entered into.
That is when I realised how claustrophobic playing a zorai could be.....for the first few months I really wanted to just rip the mask off his face, I spent time using every camera angle to see if I could get a glimpse of my little zorai features behind the mask....and I bet I am not the only one to have attempted this.
Anyway, I gradually accepted I was stuck with the mask..literally...so I went to the mask tattoo parlour and looked for something to personalise it.....and again I found myself critisizing and commenting to myself on each design...they were either too agressive, too important, too feminine....etc....and It took me quite a long time before I selected a pattern that I was happy with.
And over time I found I was altering my playstyle to match the image of my mask..
I chose A simple design that was elegant and non confrontational, After a hard day of RL I was happy to just login and relax with my Zorai.
I was also learning that prospecting and digging took a fair amount of local knowledge to be effective, so travel was not an issue for me....one reason I have remained in the same place for the best part of one year now.
And another benefit of digging......It gives me time to talk. Often I will be talking and prospecting as I move around, so I make full use of the walk feature many folk overlook in RP games.
Which also gives me time to admire the world I am in,
The Zorai lands are impregnated with so much magic you see it rising out of the ground at the Zora stables entrance in the moonlight.
It is a beautiful spectacle watching these coloured lights just floating slowly up....And when it's accompanied by appropiate mellow music through the built in MP3 player I can just recline in my chair with a glass of wine and enjoy the full Ryzom experience.
The Zorai experience to me is relaxation......
Of course all this free time allows me to contemplate the Lore and the factions, and I have had many an enjoyable conversation and debate with those passing through my little part of Atys.
In Summary.....Zorai to me are laid back, philosophical, and acutely aware of the importance of the history of Atys..so much that I am now an unlikely ambassador of peace and neutrality in Ryzom.
Do I still have my own motives and ambitions ?...well the mask has many faces behind it does'nt it
