When last we spoke...

... I was talking about Dark Ages, an isometric 2D MMO. It was the first non-text game I'd ever played that had a tight-knit community, one which had a long history of roleplay. I enjoyed my time there. One of the unique aspects of the game was that new players could only go so far without the aid of a mentor, a more experienced character who would intervene with the gods and priests to assign a character class and beginning set of gear for the new adventurer.

This was a role I relished. It was a way of introducing new players to the sometimes confusing game mechanics, while at the same time being a sort of classroom for roleplaying. As time went on, however, I found that even my students had outstripped me by many levels before long. Add to that the traditional politics of roleplayers, and it began to be a real chore to spend time online. Between being bombarded with questions and calls for aid from students and new players, the High Drama and the everpresent semi-literate beggars ("ru a rouge?"), I felt it was time to move on.

By this time a new game had just been released, called Dark Age of Camelot. Having been an avid student of the Arthurian myths and legends over the years, the opportunity to play a British knight after Arthur's fall seemed like a dream come true. I created a paladin named Gryphon Foehammer on the Morgan le Fay server and was thrilled to explore the lands of Albion.

Now, if you have read my first blog, you may recall me saying that I am not a fan of PvP (player versus player). This is true. And if you know DAoC (as it is known), then you know that a big part of the mid and end game is faction-based combat against other players. You may therefore be wondering... why would Burtimus join such a game? Wasn't it a poor fit?

Sadly, it was. For two reasons, one of which was my lack of skill and interest in PvP. The other, related to it, was the utter lack of roleplay in what should have been (in my opinion) a roleplaying wonderland. Instead, developing an "uber" character, trash-talk, spec-speak and minimaxing were the sole topics of discussion, in-game, in-guild or on the forums. Despite the gorgeous job the Mythic art department had done to craft the unique and colorful lands of dark age Britain, Ireland and Norway, no amount of visual poetry could overshadow the banal and callous players. And so it was time to move on.

By this time, I had made some tentative steps into the world of Norrath in the Sony game EverQuest. Lured by the reputation and the community, I had perhaps made the switch a little late. Most of the big roleplaying guilds were well-established, and being much lower level than the vast majority of players made it hard to find adventuring groups. I stuck with it, though, because I loved the richness, the texture and the lore of the place. I knew I was only biding my time, though, because even then, the new game was being completed.

Yes, it was the biggest, the best, the most visually stunning: EverQuest II. It was to be my new home on the Web for some years to come.

I'll write more soon. After I have explained my own journey, I hope to share some useful tips and hints for these games, as well as stories, essays and mechanics. As always, if you have a comment or request, please contact me.

Thanks for reading!