EL Essay

[Entropy]

The objective of this essay is to write about how did you find EL (ie. from a friend, website (what website), etc.), what difficulties you had in the beginning, how did you overcome them, how did you become addicted to the game, how much you play, what improvements could be done so that newbies would actually stay in the game, how long did it take you to become accustomed to the game, what sources of help did you get (another player, friend, encyclopedia, website with tutorials (which site?), etc.).

 

Please use an adequate language, without stuff such as: "lol, omfg, pwned" and so on, unless if used for sarcasm. Also use full words, no childish abbreviations such as "u, ur, r, 4, 2, etc.".

 

The length should be more than just a few small paragraphs. There is no limit in length, but keep in mind that if it's boring most of the people will stop reading after just a few paragraphs.

 

Giving some demographics details about you is nice, but not required. You can include, if you want, stuff such as your RL age, gender, and location (country is enough, don't give your address, phone number, e-mail, etc.). If you are under 13 and live in the good old USA, you should not give your location or any other data that can identify you.

 

There will be some nice prizes for the winners, in terms of EFE, ELE, and perhaps some magic swords. There will be 3 places, and we, the mods, will decide the winners.

 

The essays will be posted in this thread. Questions about it will be addressed in a new thread (if anyone has questions, suggestions, etc.) start a new thread, or post in an already existing thread.

 

The time limit is until the next weekend (9th September).

[damagedtmx]

hi my ingame name is zamora my name is real life is stefanie and i live in bakersfield california.I first found this game by a friend so i had no problems with money when i started playing and he helped out alot when i needed help.it took me about a week to get used to the game now i play everyday almost all day till i go to sleep but my char. got banned so i am currently waiting for more info on getting it unbanned.For all you noobies out there i recommend you do not break the rules to make money.Just work for your money cause when you get stronger you will love this game it has tons of nice people in it.If you do scamm or break the rules to make money you will be banned and you will regret it as i do.Some of the first difficulties i had in the beginning of the game was training my a/d because i could not catch the rabbits and beavers they were just to fast lol.Umm i dont really know how i overcame that problem except for i trained more and more and could catch them.Some other problems i had in the game was getting of ip cause it used to be snowy and i didnt know how to bring up the map so i just clicked around but i figured that out pretty fast.If any of you noobies have small problems like that just ask someone in el people in this game

[SCIPIOGOD2]

Eternal-Lands essay

 

Searching multi multiplayer games on google, I felt that there was no use finding a another good mmorpg. I searched and searched to find a game that will keep me addicted for a long time. As I searched every site, I saw an arsenal of mmorpg's. But most of them wanted your money to play. Untill one day...http://www.betawatchers.com, showed me the beacon of light! A free beta mmorpg Eternal-lands was available to everyone! I checked the site out and clicked on the name generators. At that same moment..I said, "This could be it!'' A free mmorpg that keeps getting better! A place where it has a nice community and good friends who help you know strategies,tips and even gave you equipment to start with! My first difficulty was to finish my first quest, The tutorial npc quest. Long I've waited for a free game that gives you a challenge but at the same time helps you get started! It only took 3 days for me to get used to a free mmorpg! When i first type #jc 1, The moderators were so kind to me and other newcomers to el. I thought, "This has to be it!''

So, later on that day, I learned the basics of el and got more experinced. The first guild I joined was Rbow(rare breed of warriors). They helped me through these 'guild quest' to help me get my skills up!

I suddenly got addicted to EL! There are new updates with new weapons,rings,etc! The guild I was in for the first time was the reason I stayed in EL. They helped me and so did the moderaters who were so helpful.

I finally found EL, my beacon of light, a mmorpg that is challenging yet fun at the same time! This is how I found el and it made me addicted. So many challenges, enemies, friends, helpers. This is what I call a True mmorpg.

 

By,

SCIPIOGOD2, proud player of el.

P.S. My suggestion to improve the game is just to play the game and let the creators handle it.

Edited September 7, 2006 by ELVARG

[FireEmblem8]

Having a slow computer is not a good life. I tried Runescape, and it lagged tremendously. So I found a great MMORPG search engine (www.gameogre.com). This allowed me to search for just the game I wanted to play. I went on 25 different sites searching for the right game from me until I found www.eternal-lands.com--gaming heaven.

At the beginning of my fighting career with Eternal Lands, I found Tutorial NPC who soon gave me a little fighting gear and knowledge, and I discovered the in-game encyclopedia. It has/had much knowledge that I still refer to today. Still drifting around in the lands, I found my first help site by some chatting people: www.elmanuals.com. This led me to another informational help-line that assisted me in many ways (go Alastria!). I later found out about www.el-cel.com, Dawn Headquarters, and the market site which I use periodically today as well.

Needless to say with all of these help assets, I didn't have many problems in the beginning and the game interface took little time to get used to, thanks to the nice community members who put in time to create these various help sources. Now, I play at a daily basis ranging from 2-6 hours a day, talking to the Blue Oyster Cult (the guild I'm in) as I go. I greatly appreciate the time the creators have put into the game because it is definitely the best game I have played throughout my gaming career.

There are few improvements I can think of, other than starting the new players out with a small amount of cash and an explanation of how to spend cash wisely. Also, scold begging either by those "hints" at the start of the game or by Tutorial NPC.

I end with this: Thousands of praises upon the creators, moderators, and players--they shape the way the game is. This game has meant a lot to me and my daily life to have entertainment at my fingertips--Eternal Lands you rule!

--FireEmblem8

Edited September 5, 2006 by FireEmblem8

[Gohan]

EL Essay

 

Hi, I'm Tim, a 15 year old (soon 16) guy from Belgium.

I found out about EL about 2 years ago, I never really searched for an MMORPG but

my brother told me about this game he found and that I would like it for sure.

 

Eventually I started out looking at my brother play a couple of times and finally I

started my own character. Back then I had a great feeling of playing EL. Since it was

my very first online gaming experience. But enough about that.

 

Something that really was a great help was the newbie island where you had to do several

tutorials before you could go to the next place. I think a decent tutorial to "meet" the

game is required for a good knowledge about the game, it would probably keep someone

more hooked then a game where you have to find everything out by yourself.

 

What I found even more interesting was, when I actually got in the game I could look

around in the houses and I found several quests, immediatly getting a goal for myself.

Having a goal is very important, because without a goal you have no reason to play.

Therefor many quests would be a plus to ELs gameplay.

 

But off course, the beginning of EL is and remains hard, when I play an alt character

of mine, I realize the hard beginnings of EL. Many skills require a higher level in

another skill or just a lot of money. What I mean is, your first hours you have almost

no other choice then to harvest flowers or killing rabbits. This is a downside of starting.

And I shall not even mention the pricy books you need to make something.

 

Things that get you hooked to the game are most likely the very nice community and another

... Mysterious attraction I'd say personally. I don't really know why I like EL this much

and choose it over other games. But there is something here that gets you hooked but I

mean it.. You can't really tell what it is.

I suppose it might just be because this was my first MMORPG ever.

 

Other then the newbie island back in those days alot of help was to be found on

Alastria's old site. Still active yet outdated, lucky for the newbies, and even

advanced players, others have taken over the job and have written newbie guides or

helpsites: I.E. www.el-cel.com

And if none of those help, I suppose you turn to the all-knowing encyclopedia.

And what you can't find there either you find on channel 1, probably the biggest

help in EL.

 

My conclusion about EL: A very nice game that gets you hooked with some mysterious

attraction and a very nice community that will never allow you to leave, as you will

make many friends here. A good and fairly easy gameplay making it accessible for a

wide target of gamers. And with just some more work around the edges and major updates

for sure a contender to become a great game, better then it is already (IMHO).

 

End of my EL essay, I hope you liked it.

 

BleedingSoul AKA Tim.

[Jezebelle]

My life on Eternal Lands, as I see it..

 

I remember the first day I set foot in this World..Oh my..it was..like i took a plane to a far exotic Land..A friend of mine, Mdh, told me about it. He had been living here for quit some time now and he couldn’t stop teling me about it. So, one day, I decided to check it out for myself.

 

I was placed on Newbie Island, where I was taught the basics on how to survive in these Lands.

Well, that took a while, but soon I was tranfered to Isla Prima. My friend told me to start killing rabbits..but, I couldn’t put myself in doing that, how could I?

Those cute, furry little hopping creatures..how could anyone kil them?

Well, I saw people around me doing it, but, being the vegetarian I am, I saw no use in it, so I refused time and time again.

Everytime I saw a roadkill, a deer, a dying bunny rabbit, I stopped and said a little prayr..couldn’t help myself.I still do now, a while ago, I killed a Panda by mistake...oh..I could kill myself for doing that..I spend the rest of the night at Beam whispering Hail Radu's...

 

After a while, my friend gave up trying to make me kill anything and he taught me other skills like making Fire Essences. Now, that I saw the use of!

Then he introduced me to his Leader, and explained to me the benefits of being in a good Guild. From that moment on, I learned the ropes of Eternal Life, being a member of that Great Guild.. I found a great teacher in the One that got asighned to ‘train’ me and the Leader was tough, but he knew what he was talking about and i learned a lot from him.

And it was Him..that made me kill my first bunny..He said it was needed to complete my basic training, to be able to survive, I had to learn how to kill..

So, I took a deep breath, closed my eyes..and hit..when I open my teared-up eyes..there he was..peacefull like he was sleeping..my killed bunny-rabbit..I got comforted by my Leader but still..

It was then that I decided I would be a Lover rather then a Fighter..but, my friends, that caused me even more tears then that first bunny..

Still..I wouldn’t have missed any of that, it made me who I am today..

 

Time moved on, as did this World. The community grew, and so did the Lands. A lot of changes were made, like the introduction of the pickpoints. Some fought it, some left and most accepted it, as being it a part of a New World that we all help developing.

Just when I thought I had it all, we experienced my first major disaster; a crash..a rolll back..

Right after that, if I recall correctly, we had the biggest Disaster this World has ever witnessed..The Big Boom..we lost it all..our storages, our chars, our names..our guilds..it was..a drama..

For a few it was the last drop..and they left..for us..the die-hards, it was only a challenge to start over again….You must know, we were ALL newcomers again..we had no stats, no skills..nothing..we were all equal..

So..we worked all hard..and the first thing we wanted was our guilds back, ofcourse.

I spend a week in the Mines, making Health Essences and getting my 39 alch skill back..and, with a little help from some frineds, W&W was the 5th guild to be back again. I helped some friends get their guilds back..you see..that’s the beauty of it all: when in need, you get to know your friends!

And ofcourse we had the advantage of knowing how things went, how to make money etc.

Still, it was good to be a newcomer again..at least..with newcomer stats, it made us all think back and my view on newcomers changed from that moment on. Its not easy to walk around in a World where everybody seems better and highly qualified then you are. Therefor I will never belittle a newcomer in this World.

A good friend, met here on these Lands taught me this: "When you meet a stranger, he might be a new friend you havent met yet" Its with that phrase in min I sit at beam each day...

 

 

Anyway..after the Big Boom, we had a few small and larger roll backs, but compared to the Good Stuff..i could easily live with that. It was so great to be a part of a World..and help to make it a better place to live in..

In the mean time, my skills increased and I began even to enjoy the stats of attack and defense..After all, a girl has to know how to defend herself, right?

 

When I look at our World today, I see a blooming community, helpful, caring and the few Outlaws we have, ah well..whats a World without Outlaws, right?

We have to deal with them in the Real World, so why not here?All the changes, the new things, even the delay in foods..its all leading us to a Better World.

I see great clothing..altho Im still waiting for the black leather..you know..sometimes people stop me and ask me why in the Wrold am I training in steel plate..well..my answer is simple: brown leather don’t suit me..so..black leather..if you please, Roja

haha!

As for me..standing in this World today:I try to be helpful, I heal, I get in trouble at times for speaking my mind too soon, too fast, too loud..its..very close to my life in the Real World acuatly, except for erm..the extra magic spells I have here!

 

I can easily say, this World has become a part of my Real World. I have made some great friends here, who I even see in real life. And no..we do not chase bunnies or pick flowers from Grannies garden when we meet..and yes..we drink our ale..and not mix it with flowers or such….J

Its rather scary how a Virtual World like this has so much effect on someone at least on me. When I wake up, I have to check before I go to work if alls ok..I never go to sleep at night before walking myself home..sometimes..i scare myself..in thinking how real this vitual life has become after a few years….If I was to loose this Other Life of mine that I have here..i wouldn’t know what to do..its my Great Escape from the hectic Real Life as a nurse, a mom, and so many other roles I have to play..this is a Role I created myself..and I can be..myself..completely..with all the chances our God has given us..

 

And I thank Him for that..just as I thank The Gods in my Real Life, for what I have been given..

 

JezeBelle

proud Citizen of the Eternal Lands

Edited September 4, 2006 by Jezebelle

[fyrrflyy]

My Eternal Lands Essay

 

Being a young, outgoing, fun lad of almost 20, I had searched far and wide for the right game. Oh I had tried many games, such as Runescape, Everquest, and some free online game.Well, one day as I was searching for a different world to spend my time in, I came accross this strange game known as Eternal-Lands.

 

I checked out the website to see what they offered to me for my valuable time and money. I was astounded to see they had no requirements as to what you can do in-game! You can harvest, caft, fight, or just even talk, and you can still have fun! You see, unlike other games, you can do everything this game has to offer. You can do anything that you want to, or you can just do one thing. There' no requirements such as: if you fight, all you can do is fight, and nothing but fighting. That's one of the reasons I was attracted to this game. Another reason I was drawn in by this fabulous game is that it has an outstanding community. From the very first time I set my eyes upon the strange new thing called a forum, I was amazed. Here, you can talk to people that arent in-game at that moment, sell things that everyone can see, not just people who are in a certain channel or guild. Or you can plan an event; like getting married or having a contest.

 

So, I decided to download the game to see what it is like. Well, from the very first time I set my eyes upon the character creation screen, I was hooked.Never before had I seen such intimate detail on eyes, portliness, face, and even what clothes your character was wearing when he or she first entered the world. After countless minutes of thinkig of the perfect name, and a password that others would'nt be able to guess, I planted my feet firmly in the grass of Isla Prima and started my journey.

 

As I was wandering thru the island wondering what to do,I met this great person. He told me how the game worked, how to play, and even helped me out by giving me some stuff. He pointed me in the right direction of what guild to join, the proud guild of IRON, which I'm still in to this day.The more an more I learned about this wonderful new land, the more i was addicted. I just couldn't wait to get home and mix some fire essences, or fight some wolves. But then, I learned more and more about the game.

 

As my levels increased, and my knowledge expanded, I was able to do more and more things. I learned more advanced forms of alchemy, one of the greatest things about this game, and I learned the great form of magic. With magic, you use essences that you create thru alchemy, and use some arcane form of knowledge, and can do great things. At the beginning all you can do is heal yourself, but as your experience grows you can do greater thins, such as heal other, which many people enjoy and greatly appreciate. As your magic gets even greater , you can learn to shield yourself, protect yourself from magic, and even completely restore your health!

 

And that leads me to where I am today, and what I do to help make this game better. I still enjoy using magic, and fighting, and mixing some essences every now and then. But also, as I was helped, now I tend to spend alot of my time helping the younger beings in this game. I hold contests and give stuff away, and I'm frequently in the new player channel giving answers to the many questions most new players have.

 

I tend to log on every day, because of the so many aspects of this game. I can make some money, gain some experience, help some people, or just chat. No matter what I do, I'm having fun and making some more friends.

 

Fyrrflyy

Proud to be walking the eternal-lands of Mynadar

[fullmetal_aj]

hi all , my name in game is fullmetal_aj and am 21 year, been playing for 5~6 mounth i guess

 

(1)how i start the game :

 

i wanted an online game so i searched in the net for about 3~4 day (about 2~3 hour daily),i didnt know any one in Real Life that play any mmorpg , so it was hard ,i was searching 4 a free internet game basiclly by searching in google @ " free online game , free internet game ,free mmorpg " & pic search

 

pics(Images) mean a lot 2 me in searching , many game i didnt like the pic for them (site pic & ingame pic) and el pic was ,to be honest, not that much good (like if there was some fighting pic with a lot of peaple (in the ingame pic section it would make temptation) i remember seeing a pic 2 player while pvping and i wander what they was doing ...

 

but when i checked the fourm and seen how many post is there that made me think that "umm i guess a lot of player play that game like 30000 post in general chat mean a lot 2 me"

 

but what made me download it is the low space to download

 

when i finished downloading , i started the game , it was "laggy" a lot as i play it now in poor option , but it was very slow .... but i didnt give up and started 2 change el.ini and option then it work fine ... i was so happy ... but really i suggest that when any 1 start the game for the 1st time must be in a poor option , coz not a lot know about option and .ini thing (dono maybe coz of connection speed vary between player , u know better than me in this)

 

(2)what i did 1st , and how i became addicted :

 

as a noob , i press every thing , so i get out of channels and didnt know how 2 join them back (so the new channels system now is very good) , didnt know any thing about how 2 heal , eat .. although i read all the npc messeges (so now tutore npc heal so no prblem now)

 

i spend a lot of time of killing rabbits and being poor and weak ,later i know about pick point and perks , i messed up a lot (adding magic nex so that i became a magican , and exc perk so i harvest a lot and be rich ,and 4 coordination and a lot of phy coz i didnt know what is the best pick points for fighting)

 

any way i just loved the increasing of experiance & levels , and mm perk , and that i can be what ever i want when ever i want (so i can be a fighter & a manufactur & summoner) coz at 1st i was afraid that i will miss up with my char .......

 

the chat system is very good (at least to me), i used to chat in mirc and yahoo, i loved the way i chat about ingame things and not ingame things , but really i didnt know how to pm ..... i did when some one told me how to do so (also the // thing) .... and i really started to like the game when i became in a guild .... make u have an identity and that your are not alone (u have support ) & /or (you are the support ) ...

 

 

i can go on and on .... but i wanted to say things that help developers

 

 

FMA

[Elminsterr]

November 23rd, 2005

Vicinity of Rotterdam, the Netherlands

21:37 local time

 

Rain. All I saw that day was rain. And not just normal rain, no, very, very wet rain. That's what you get with water: it's wet. And water coming out of the air is not only wet, it's annoying, noisy and grey, and it messes up ones mood. What do you do when you can't go out, as the second you step outside you're wet to the bone?

One goes about the house, crouches in a corner, contemplating about the meaning of life. Having finished this, one takes a sandwich and looks around for better things to do. That's what I did that day. Better things to do usually didn't mean using my PC. But this day it did.

The computer, that wondrous, mechanical device we humans can't live without anymore, was dark. The electricity was being kept from it, as to spare me a high bill. I decided to allow the electricity entry; greedy did it find its way into the machine.

I was looking for a distraction of the mind; I read a computer magazine, PC Gameplay, that mentioned a computergame, being played over the internet - another of those peculiar inventions - and decided to check it out; it was free. We Dutch people like things that are for free.

The installation was a mental preparation for what was about to come.

Eternal Lands.

 

Eternal Lands?

And suddenly I found myself in a new magical world - a world without borders, in time as well as in space. A world full of possibilities, possibilities that seemed endless and always expanding.

I was no longer myself. I was Elminster of Shadowdale, the mighty Mage!

Wrong name. Elminster already exists. Damn it.

Elminsterr.

That's me.

And I was no mighty mage. I was new, I was young, I was unexperienced and I was small. Isla Prima seemed a large place, I was even scared to look beyond its borders. Bit by bit, I learned - I went on adventures, such as the well-known and vast Valley of the Dwarves Lilac Harvest Adventure, told in numerous songs and stories. I couldn't cast as much as a simple healing spell - but all that changed. I delved into libraries, read books, developed my knowledge and skills.

I went hunting - the powerful Elminsterr, hunting rabbits! Besides humiliating, it was painful, to hurt those cuddly little animals - but the warm hands I got from using their skins as gloves soon made me feel better. I did no longer have to worry about the rain. Then I remembered the rain was somewhere else, in a place where these fur gloves wouldn't help me.

 

Another day. The sun was shining, the weather was brilliant, the garden was screaming for the attention of me being present. But I declined.

Once more I was Elminsterr. And I would be Elminsterr very often - sometimes for hours and hours a day. I would dive into the mysteries and secrets of the game, I would develop my powers and skills to levels I didn't even dream of at my first arrival on Isla Prima.

I would walk around, to see that it was good - and that it would stay that way or get even better, as long as there would be knowledgeable, kind people helping those that arrived just as I did, that day.

 

It's raining again.

And I'm Elminsterr.

 

 

 

Elminsterr of Shadowdale

[Ghaele]

Hi everyone, my name is Ghaele and im a member of BanE. Hmmm where to start, well in the real world im 34 years old, I live in England Essex and I am indeed a female. To be honest I only actually started playing because my significant other was playing and was completely hooked. I would lean over his shoulder and watch in amazement as my husbands character sat there picking flowers, I just didn’t get it. He kept telling to make a character and have a go so I did but I didn’t expect to play more than once. Spent my first 4 hours picking flowers, Harvesting the snowman’s nose and killing rabbits and really had a good time doing it. Just watching my husband play made it appear very boring to me, however once I started I realized there was a lot more to it. Its was the talking to others whilst fighting, laughing at each other when we died over and over again when we dared try to fight a beaver or rat and helping each other usually by bag sitting. Until then id never played an on line game or really used the net for anything other than shopping and I had the type speed of a dead tortoise. In four hours I had spoken to god knows how many people some of which just as slow as me at typing so conversations did drag a bit but I was really enjoying myself till my husband wanted his pc back. Not to worry I managed to wrestle away his pc for a few hours here and there and really started to play

.

I would say I had it quite easy whilst learning because of other family members that played already, I forgot to mention my son and my uncle who were playing as well. They were there to tell my that I couldn’t take on that cute little white fluffy rabbit I had seen in south kilarn, didn’t stop me trying when they went out and with an attack and defence skill of 18/18 I learnt very quickly. My son would help me with every question that I asked, my husband being the man he is would say "read the encyclopedia its in there" which now when I think about it has helped me more, I still use it even after a year of playing. At first I would be hooked on alchemy and make fire essence all day, then health essence when I got a few levels in it. Then I got hooked on potion making, then fighting it seemed like I had so much I had to do well maybe not had but wanted to do that I would find myself planning what I was going to do whilst I was at work. I found it so easy to pick up and with so many people that are happy to answer your questions no matter how newbish they are I would say I was playing with confidence within a month.

 

Well I got my own pc a while back now so I can play whenever I like, sometimes not a good thing when I have to get up early to get my youngest ready for school then go to work but hey. In the year or so that I have been playing I have made new friends and have such a laugh that I literally have tears in my eyes and jaw ache its well worth a few late nights. Im in a great guild, I have my icy cool Draegoni I wanted and my character just keeps getting better. One of the main things I like about this game is there is no end you just keep getting better and better, meeting new people and now im able to help newbie’s by answering the same question I probably asked when I started playing, well some of them. With every update it feels like Christmas again. Haven’t seen an update yet that I haven’t enjoyed. I think with EL you will either love it and play for a long time or you will play few times and decide then and there that you don’t like it. Its not that there isn’t enough help out there for new players or enough monsters or skills to keep them interested because as I said earlier sometimes even now I feel overwhelmed by what I want to do in game and there is an amazing amount of people there to help you not forgetting the encyclopedia and forums. Its a game you have to work at, that gets better every time you play, you just have to work at it. I feel that all the help is there you just have to ask and listen to what the moderators and the more experienced players have to say.

[serene]

hello

 

Since 2 years I play games..first the ones I had to buy but last year I started this online games in which I could interact with other people.

That was a new world for me.....addictive...but fun.....I found new interactive friends.....but that game was for very young players...you know which one....so when a friend told me about this game I was curious.....a game without people calling names, that was interesting, more my style and the players were a bit older too

 

I am a not so very young female teacher in holland and always liked to play..could this be a better game..I tried half a year ago and wow how nice was everyone to me and how helpful was the newbie channel in eternal lands.

It was difficult in the beginning but the people were very kind when I asked them about , well what not..

I felt that I was accepted for who I was, whatever stupid things I asked..

 

So time went by and I went outside ip..to explore this new world. I didnt want to kill but I had to...and I have accepted it although I would prefer a game without it.

After playing with my real life friend only I was asked to join a guild...that was a new experience!! Suddenly I had a bunch of friends around me, helping me out, making fun, and sharing our el experiences......Now it feels like they are my family...

Exploring is my favourite and why I like this game so much, there are so many secrets to discover, I love it.

And when I came at c2 it was even better..what a beautiful world.....

 

EL is a part of my life now and I am telling all my friends and students about it and hope they will join the game too because pedagogical its very good I think, for instance reading the books and the stories of prattler and how to do all the skills and the exploring.

Also the contests are very fun to do and one day I will host one myself....

EL is never boring, especially with the events and the special days.

 

And I am learning a lot in this game, and not only about skills but more important to me,

Learning a lot about myself!!... learning how to deal with people, how to communicate, how to open up again, practice a joke now and then and how to behave when this would be the real world. This behavior in EL has an effect on me in real life. Because who knows, any person in real life could be an EL player, wouldnt that be wonderful, except PKers that is ..

I look at flowers more now, see if I recognize them from EL and once when I saw a white rabbit running in the fields my first impuls was to chase it....lol...

I try to be as serene in real life as I am in the game...honest, friendly, open, respectfull, helpfull, peacefull

So this is much more then a game to me.

 

Improvements for me would be: dancing feature/womens clothes and hairdresser/a logo or button of el so I can see in real life who is an el player too

 

At night in bed I think of EL and the nice conversations I had with people from all over the world and especially with my friends from my guild- which is NL- and go to bed with a smile........

 

Serene

Edited September 4, 2006 by serene

[The_Knight]

Ahh… Life! Feeling the cool breeze of the air blow through my ruffled grey hair, I awake a dwarf and appear at a small clearing on an island, next to me hovers a creature, Not a man but something more beautiful, a Wraith. I see other men, in the races of Elf, Human and dwarf. Perched on a rock near by I see something beautiful. What is it….a woman covered in pink with a gold and yellow cloak with two small letters: EL, her name is Tanyia. Like a shepherd she watched over us, making sure we stay safe as we journey into this new world. I find another man, but he seems motionless, only speaking in soft tones. He wears a radiant purple cape, helping those along the way to learn and grow in this new world. I explore this beautiful Island so many faces, so many wonders, the Island is strewn with flowers of all colors, mountains and caves. Pristine waters flow and hit the beach at the coast close to a small watchtower. This is it, this is my new life…

 

This new world that I wondered on to has become my new life, It consumes me and my thoughts. Waiting to gain that next level in hopes to become the best some day. I talk with the people of this world, though never seeing your real face fell like you know them already. Their personality shows through what they wear, an Fighter wears his Titanium platemail, its sparked with the radiance of his power, his passion is shown through the sword he has wielded. Then there is the more humble in this world, like the makers. They provide us with everything we need to enjoy this life. Without them where would we be? They created this alternate reality, our second life and we are eternally grateful…

 

,Captivated

The Knight

 

EDIT: Now that I look back at what Ent wants us to post... I failed, but here is my shot at what he does want:

I was searching Google for mmorgp's and I found a Screenie of EL I thought the grahpis looked cool, and the interface awesome, So I decided to try it out... Then before I realised it I was captivated, stuck in this world... this world called the Eternal Lands. I made some new friends as a beginner at the game, my first I remember was NolGrim, he doesnt log on much and I havent talked to him for a couple of months, but I meet new people every day, thats one thing I like about EL, its not a game... its a community. I cant wait to see whats instore for the furure of EL and whats its going to turn into. I remember when I was a "newb" (Sorry Ent) on Ip, I had so many people help me out, And I love spending a day on IP healing and helping them grow and find the same addiction I have. It took me about a week to actually get accustomed to the game, It was probably easier then most because I have had some former mmorpg experince, but I know along with alot of people that I even though I have played almost 9 months now am still learning... Being tought be the best, my friends

 

,Again

The Knight

Edited September 4, 2006 by The_Knight

[chewieneo]

chewieneo an essay in the making ,

 

about me, first off let me tell you hello and about me a little bit. my name is matthew i was born in fredericksburg, virginia and moved to pennsylvania when i was 1 and currently live in syracuse NY. i found out about this game a few years ago. my dad's a computer programmer and his friends at his work told him about a website with a bunch of MMORPG's (www.mpog.com i think) i started down the list when i was about 10 and started with AQ(AdventureQuest), and ended with well of souls. in between i found some really cool games such as runescape( which i hate now, sry DESPISE now, i was young and stupid) and rpg world online. and in between one of those games was eternal lands

 

i actually did not become addicted to the game until recently this year when i actually read something on the game, a book, and started making money. one of my biggest difficulties in this game was i had no patience. but i cured myself of that and had a blast. and now i play it way too much because even though it took me two years to get fully started i did not give up. with the help of the encyclopedia and friendly players ( some unfriendly...) i was able to get started fully. thats when i joined a guild (Temp which i still don't know what happened too) and we had great times together. once you are past the noobie stage it's probably one of the most addicting games you'll ever play, and believe me it is. i found myself saying, ok i'll only play for a couple hours and end up playing it all day without ever getting bored (sometimes my parents yell at me).

 

one good way i think to get noobies to join is to maybe have some starter books to get them used to the fact that they have to read such as a 45min reader on how to harvest vegetables or something like that. maybe also you could have some quests that will earn the player some gold. anyway that is one way i would have become addicted much earlier. lastly i would like too see mor noob friendly monsters to train on.

 

in conclusion to this masterpiece of an essay, all i really have too say is thank you too all the great people who helped in this game and all who answered my overly annoying noob messages and to the programmers and artist's who helped make this game (Entropy your a genius!). for one last time THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

-chewieneo

Edited September 4, 2006 by chewieneo

[dust]

DATELINE: Irilion, the 3rd Mortun of Chimar, 3:00.

LOCATION: Irinveron, Fisher’s Point, between the Havian Straits and Glacian Ocean.

PURPOSE: Locate and interview one of the Eternal Lands most secretive and elusive inhabitants known only as dust.

 

After following some very expensive tips from those wishing to remain anonymous, I finally discovered where the battle-scarred veteran, known as dust, quietly bides the time between her ferocious battles with Yetis and Chimeran Wolves. We see a petite, athletic figure sitting behind her best friend Chary, the storage matron. Her outward appearance is meek, mild, aged; yet her demeanor is pure business and one look into her eyes gives you the certain feeling you are in the presence of the shadow of death.

 

I cough hesitantly and ask if this is a good time to speak of her adventures in this land. She looks up from her essence mixing session, smiles ever so briefly, and nods almost imperceptibly.

 

I hurriedly sit, dig out a parchment and quill from my pack and thank her for this opportunity.

 

Irilion Informer: How long have you traveled these Eternal Lands?

dust: I will celebrate my first anniversary this very month.

 

Irilion Informer: What difficulties did you experience in your early life here?

dust: Having been raised in Grubani Penninsula after the Great War, you can imagine the shock of adjusting to all new surrounding as quickly as possible. My parents were victims of a marauding Cyclops when I was quite young and I was forced to survive by my wits and strength.

 

Irilion Informer: How did you overcome these difficulties?

dust: I quickly became a voracious reader, anxiously devouring everything written about this fascinating world. I trained ceaselessly on everything that moved until I knew what to do instinctively.

 

Irilion Informer: Are you addicted to the adventure or the endless possibilities here?

dust: I would not say addicted exactly. I take time out from my daily fighting to learn the finer arts of alchemy, potion making, summoning, manufacturing, magic, and perhaps even crafting one day. These other endeavors assist me with patience so I rarely fight more than 6 hours per day ;-)

 

Irilion Informer: How much do you accomplish in a single day?

dust: My present daily routine consists of strength and endurance training with approximately one thousand monsters and then a relaxing break to make the supplies I need for the next training day. I am content with that for now. It may change in the future as the possibilities offered here are unlimited.

 

Irilion Informer: What improvements could be made to attract and keep new adventurers?

dust: As the land appears to be increasingly filled with younger and younger adventurers, I would recommend having them outfitted with the basic necessities of life upon their arrival. Then, for those willing and interested in learning more, have more stimulating quests geared to enhance their knowledge, skills, abilities, and possessions. Life can be very hard for those who have no patience here. Death lurks around every corner and you must be vigilant and have the courage to persevere.

 

Irilion Informer: How long did it take you to become accustomed to this land?

dust: I was comfortable with my surrounding the first day actually, but then I am driven to achieve a single purpose here and am well on my way to accomplishing that.

 

Irilion Informer: May I be so bold as to inquire of this goal about which you speak so passionately ?

dust: I aspire to one day become the most effective giant slayer to travel these lands. And when newer, more fearsome creatures are discovered; they too shall fall effortlessly before me.

Irilion Informer: After hearing of your many almost unbelievable accomplishments here, I have no doubt you will be successful.

dust: Your words show wisdom beyond your years my friend.

 

Irilion Informer: What sources of assistance did you find most helpful?

dust: The people here are kind, courteous, patient, and friendly. The Ancients have left many books, scrolls, and parchments filled with unimaginable knowledge. You have but to explore, look, touch, absorb everything and you will be well equipped.

 

Irilion Informer: I would like to thank you for your forthrightness and I am sorry, but I must ask the one question you probably get wherever you travel. How is it possible for you to be so healthy? What is your secret?

dust: Off the record?

Irilion Informer: Of course, I will say nothing if you do not want me to. <dust leans forward slightly and whispers into my ear.>

Irilion Informer: Good Lord! No wonder.

 

Irilion Informer: There you have it folks. Everything you could possibly want to know about that elusive, dark shadow we all know simply as dust.

[Sistema]

Essay – Eternal Lands and what I think

 

 

It all started when I discovered Role-Playing games had multiplayer versions. A world in which hundreds of players from all around the globe could interact, chat and complete with each other. Google was my best friend, as it opened a thousand doors when I simply entered the word “MMORPG”. Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game: the next generation of gaming.

 

I was surprised when I saw the endless variety of games and sites along with their screenshots. I searched for hours only to find out that most games had a subscription fee. I was shocked at the idea of paying a certain amount of money per month in order to play a game, I was only thirteen at that time and had no idea how I would pay anyway. Google was handy yet again; I added the word “free” to what I already had. I realised this time Google brought up what we call ‘Gaming Directories’. It didn’t take me too long to discover MPOGD.com. This site was very handy, as it had a game search engine with a filter.

 

I filled the filter with what I desired; 3D stand-alone client which worked on windows, real-time based multiplayer online game. The site gave me a five page list as a result. I skipped most games because I couldn’t get them working or the installation file was way too big or simply because I didn’t like the description. The first game I tried was Runescape. It wasn’t worth the time creating an account. It’s a disgrace to the world of gaming in my opinion, and even now I still wonder why so many people play it. Other games I tried were A3, Conquer Online, Illarion and many more games which I don’t remember. I gave up searching for a while after that.

 

Then came that day when searched again, this time on the Game Of The Month page, and found the game of my dreams, the game which I’ve been playing for over two years. It was June 2004 when I found Eternal Lands. The description was great, the official site was awesome and the client size was perfect!

 

I’m not sure what version the client was back then but it was earlier than v0.9.8. I don’t remember the big crash though. I almost fell of my chair while reading the Licence Agreement during the installation, absolutely hilarious. If you haven’t read through it I suggest you do, because I’ve just done so now. The installation went smoothly, I closed the window and returned to my desktop and there it was. The initials of the game I was ready to play for ever. I was welcomed by a screen full of animals and monsters; it was giving a hint of what was awaiting me. After reading through the rules and picking the appearance of my character from a small selection of clothes, skin, hair and race type (we need a bigger variety) I was immediately sent to The Wraith which looked like a guy who was hanged and was waiting to be dried up. It was bizarre that I wasn’t asked for age and e-mail address at all. Most other games would have wanted to verify your account creation via e-mail.

 

Unlike other people who thought chasing bunnies was childish, I like the idea of killing the rabbits and picking up the fur and meat and selling them to taverns. I soon found more critters roaming around, but also found out that they were much too strong for me, the hard way. I was amazed when I saw the water in the game, the way it reflected the surroundings was great. The chat had caught my attention, I realised that I could ask questions which were always bothering me. My first question was “How do I regain my health?” as it was a difficulty which I couldn’t overcome by myself. Even after asking several times I didn’t get an answer. I felt ignored. But then someone hinted me that I had to put an at (@) sign before my question for it to be sent to the channel, else it would only show up on the people on my screen. I was helped by many kind people. TirasHazor, Ember, Goatsgomoo and Chance to name a few. Moderation was great then and even better now.

 

It took me a while to get use to the interface and chat, which is quite natural. You cannot be born and know how to walk and speak, can you? But it wasn’t hard due to me being a quick learner. The client performance was quite good, as my computer was quite fast. I realised I was gaining levels by fighting and harvesting, but I was also earning pickpoints with every overall level I gained. Using them on perks, attributes and nexuses was the hard part, and is the part most players, including me, get confused on and choose wrong. How was I supposed to know that having a magic nexus level of eight would ruin my character and cause me to reset later on?

 

The community was the biggest role in my addiction. I had made many great friends, some of them I knew for so long and so good I could almost call them my family; my father, my mother, my brother and sister. I had found myself the perfect guild simply by a great guy returning my pickaxe when I died in the Portland-Whitestone cave. I have had many great adventures since then: finding my way into Vermor Castle, being greeted by a skeleton and finding myself in what I thought was hell, thinking I was sent here because I entered a castle without permission, then finding the way out of the underworld soon after that.

 

I had started making money from the old lilac bush which use to be right beside the flower shop in the Valley of the Dwarves. Soon after, I bought a pair of leather pants and boots, iron chain mail, iron shied and helm. I was already making my own healing potions thanks to the information in the encyclopedia. But one night when I was in Lakeside Village I was slaughtered by a very tall gargoyle. I lost all my valuables, everything! All I had left was my leather boots in my inventory. I came back to find out that my bag was gone. This was a major shock for me, and I was very close to leaving the game, all my hours and days of harvesting lilacs gone...

 

I gave the game a break, a week if I recall correctly. Little did I know that I would be accepted into the development team and be making my very own maps when I returned and registered on the forums and explored the website. Just imagine? I would be making my very own Whitestone... a Portland that I created... a Desert Pines which everyone would be lurking in. Just the thought was enough. It was called ‘Irilion’, the second continent. After that I was eternally attached to the lands.

 

Months after moths I played along with the hundreds of great people, meeting new ones each day. I noticed there were storyline and role-play threads. I became more and more curious with each story I read. Thus I created the background for my character; Sistema Silverwish. Role-playing is a great aspect of the game and I think more people should be doing it. Eternal Lands revealed the literal and creative side of me, it changed my life.

 

I am now seventeen years old (great birthday party in-game which I will never forget), it’s been more than two years for me and I am still enjoying it as much as the first day I was here. Now I spend most of my time writing and creating for the development of the game. I’m either at beam or The Wraith healing and helping people out, or on the help channels answering questions, or just basically having a good time with friends.

 

Some things I can suggest to make the game better playable is to get official animation tutorials with sound, showing what each button in the interface does, what the specific perks, nexuses and attributes do, and letting the player know about the chat and encyclopedia, as all these are very essential to develop a character. Most people think the game is low quality, thinking there are only rabbits and deer to kill, more low level monsters should be added to get the players to think the game is not just an animal ‘farm’. Also, the players should be aware of the options. I’ve realised most people have their settings on default. People should adjust some of the settings (especially the perspective value) so it fits them best.

 

I’d like to conclude my essay by thanking Radu and Roja for their excellence in the field of game creation. I was amazed to find out that the two creators and owners of the game were husband and wife. You two should be very proud. Many thanks to the dedicated people on Channel 1 and 2, you all do a very great job. If anyone ever wants to repay those people, drop by the help channels and assist a few new comers. The programmers, developers, helpers and volunteers need to constantly be thanked; the game would be no where near what it is if they all weren’t here. Other than that I’d like to tell the players of Eternal Lands that they are very lucky to have such a great and organised game for free, very lucky indeed.

 

 

 

Thanks for patiently reading through my essay on Eternal Lands. I hope you’ve enjoyed it.

- Sistema Silverwish.

 

EDIT: typo

Edited September 4, 2006 by sisteMa`

[guidera]

My Eternal Lands Essay

 

I'm 13 years old and from Ireland

I was never a big fan of computers, or flashy light boxes as i liked to call them, until 8 months ago that is. We got broadband on our computer at home(which i didnt really appreciate for the first week or so). My friend who lives down the road(ingame Harald_redbeard) insisted that i install EL, I said no, sticking to my non-RPG, complete them in 10 minute games. I finally installed it, strated playing it against my own will(harald'd bites hurt, do what he says).

 

I stood in a strange world beside a ghost called "The Wraith", i looked around, beavers and rabbits running around the ground, sea beside me, it looked like a nice place, Harald stood next to me saying he'll get his cousing, his cousing Peeper logged on and said hi to me, i vaguely knew him outside EL, and liked him instantly ingame(mainly because he gave me a sword, every newbies dream ). I levelled up very slowly, mainly exploring this new world with it's deers and wolves and dangerous creatures that i was soon to learn about.

 

"fluffy rabbits" harald says to me one fine day. "wut r u tkng bout?" I reply, still not being able to type properly, "fluffy rabbits" he saysagain "are an extremely dangerous creature!". "they look like cute little white rabbits but when you get to close, they'll bite your hand clean off your arm!" I thought about that gruesome image and continued to explore the world learning about how people with blue names don't talk to you(at the start i just thought they were rude) and how to hold competitions(i hid at the c2 entrance and the prize was 10 rabbit furs to find me, a surprising amount of people took part )

 

I arrived in Whitestone, a nice sunny day, i was walking around the grassy map, looking at raven(who was then in Ghram's village), the PK arena, (i learned not to go in for a while) and the C2 entrance, which i discovered surpirsingly fast. A nice day, when out of the corner of my eye i saw a glint of white, i walked towards it and to my horror stood a white rabbit on the ground in front of me, i knew not to fall for that cute little smile though, wearing my prized leather torso, helm and iron sword i ran for my life! The white rabbit came after me but then turned away a few metres, I was quite happy to have gotten away from the vicious man-eating creature. I told my friends of my daring escape later, they laughed at me, to this day i still don't know why.....

I continued to annoy my friend with clueless newbie talk and bad typing.

 

guidera: wer r u hrld?

harald_redbeard: over here guidera come look at this

guidera: wut?

guidera: r u rbt?

harald_redbeard: no i am not a rabbit guidera

guidera: r u rbt?

harald_redbeard: no guidera i am not a rabbit!

guidera: giv me xp

guidera: give me xp

guidera: giv me xp plz

 

And things went on like that for a while eventually i learned how to type properly, play the game well, and most of all i made some great friends. The more you play this game the funner it seems to get, Peeper and i are now ingame brothers and have had some great fun, like when he became depressed one day after his full plate and mirror cloak got bagjumped, and as a deal to make him not type #killme yes i called the guild peep for a day and gave him a titanium axe

 

That's what EL has been like for me, great fun, ups and downs....actually just ups It's the only RPG i've ever played so i have nothing to compare it to but it is absolutely brilliant anyway! I can't believe such a great game is free

 

Thanks for reading everyone(and when the prizegiving comes about just remember i'm 13)

Edited September 7, 2006 by guidera

[duckyo]

My Essay

 

Well my friend (Neophyte) Told me about EL one day he told me a bit about it and it sounded quite good. So when i got back from School i went on the EL website and downloaded the game.

 

At first i didn't have a clue what to do, so i went off and didn't go on again for the rest of the day. Then the next day i went on and my friend Neophyte was on (Apple_Pie at the time) He gave some stuff and told me what to told on the game.

 

Then after a few weeks on playing I didn't bother go on for a Month for some reason. Eventaully I went back on the game and got my levels up and up... Then after when a got a Skill over 39, I made guild, Duck Freedom Forces, I made it because it was what i wanted to do since my friend told me about EL.

 

Then when my a/d was 45/49 or something around that i took a Break for a bit. I've been playing for nearly two years.

 

In conclusion EL is defently the best game i've ever played,

 

DuCkYo

The Duck Master

Age 11 =D

Edited September 4, 2006 by duckyo

[peeper :)]

aww guid

 

I'm peeper im 13 and i never really used the computer till 1 fateful day...

 

i was at my cousins house (harald again ) and he showed me this game i was look "oh cool" i went home and played it and was like free st00f plz!! i met some great people on my first 10 minutes playing and broke the rules about 50 times (thanks Learner for setting me straight with all the muting ^^) i soon learned the dynamics etc.. and how to type properly, i thank EL from turning me from a slow typer to a quick make my freinds go wow typer all in all EL has to be the best game ever and i thank Radu and Roja sooo much for putting their time into making it and hope it paid off for them then my cousin said try r******* (you know the game) and i watched him play it and after 10 seconds said, wanna play EL? im addicted and have tried to leave many times but the addiction is unbearable

 

Thank you so much for giving me this game (well it's more of a community than a game really lol)

 

your Gnomie freind

 

peeper

[Geneams]

Fresh off my Everquest (commonly called Evercrack) I found I had a big hole where an addicting MMORPG game used to be. I tried Runescape, Tibia and a number of others and they just didn't fit. Then when all hope was lost I saw my brother playing Eternal Lands. I asked him to let me play, and he did, all i did was kill rabbits, but i did it for half an hour...I knew from then on its my addiction...

 

Many of the problems I had to overcome occurred in the market, there were never any player buyers and i had to buy and sell much to NPCs, which made it seem more like a single-player RPG game. But as soon as I entered my first guild ~CL~ the game became great! It took me almost no time at all to get used to the game because my brother was playing it too.

 

My biggest advice to newbies is to train up only your alchemy and attack and defense because those skills are the easiest and you make the most money...Also you should join a guild as quickly as possible because it truely helps with the gaming expience.

[trotter]

EL Essay

 

My name is James from the United States of America, im nineteen years of age. I was first introduced to this game by two friends who had been playing for about a month. They told me to just give it a week and once i get accustomed to the game I wouldn't be able to stop playing. They both helped me to get started giving me the basic leather armors, some health essences and a few body restoration potions. They also gave me training advice as to how i should spend my pickpoints and what I should train on. This made it very easy for me to pick up the game fast, and also made it less frustrating to figure out how to play.

 

I first started to play a few hours a day mostly training attack and defense. I soon wanted to do other skills so i took up potioning and alchemy. I found that having these two skills was very useful when being new to the game. I could make my own health essence and also spirit restoration potions to train and make gold coins for armor to fight in. With the endless supply of these items I could train non stop and began to level quickly. As i learned more about the game and the players I decided the true skill and fun of the game was in the player killing aspect. As i watched safely from the stands in the White Stone Arena, I was mezmorized watching players fight each other. I decided I wanted to be that strong one day and to be able to pk. I guess this was when i seriously got addicted to the game. Training attack and defense take alot of time, especially when the top players were already beyond the hundreds when I started to play, i knew i had to level fast.

 

As knew items were intoduced and more monsters to fight i became even more motivated to become strong. Finally all my hard work had payed off and i entered the top 200 list in attack and defence. I then started to pk alot and was having the most fun in the game i ever had. I think the reason this game is so addicting is teh fact that you can always improve. There will always be someone stronger and better than you which i think motivates people to play so much. Everyone wants to be the best and aslong as there is someone stronger than you there will always be a need to train and play even more.

 

As for some suggestions to keep new players in the game i think there needs to be more visuale effects. Perhaps have some animations for spells such as harm, mana drain, restoration etc would make the game look nicer. When you enter a new game its good to have things catch your eye and look nice, otherwise people will just quit and go buy World of Warcraft. I think the magic swords and the new armors are a great start, they look great and i think when new players see them and try to raise the gold coins to get them they learn more about the game. New players have not yet learned about the community and the fun of pking so basically they just strive to get the good looking armor and swords so they can look cool and pro. Also most players like watching some of the top players fight, so more contest where people could watch would make new players more motivated to keep playing and become strong.

 

Now i mostly play around four to five hours a day between and after classes. With all my time and work i have reached attack and defense levels over 100, something that i never thought possible. I am still motivated to level even more, there are still many people stronger then me that needs killing and until that is accomplished i dont plan on quitting anytime soon. This is a great game and also free! For not paying a cent to play i have had a year of entertainment, and im very grateful for all the hard work the mods and developers have done just to please us the players. Keep up the good work.

 

 

-broken

[Roja]

These are nice to read guys, thanks, and keep posting!!!

[Street_Ghost]

I'm a D english student.....

Just writting whatever comes up, not organized..

 

I was introduced to EL around the begining of March 2004. I was playing a text absed game, never played graphical mmorpgs before. That text based game "Space Crime" kept hounding me to vote for their smeggy game, I went to a voting site, seen EL at number one. I was like smeg I have to check this out. So there my joruney began untill about July 2004, I had just picked up the greatest training partner anyone could ask for, Mihaim. We were getting millions of experience a day. Funny thing is I kept thinking to myself, It would suck if we had to start over for some reason. Oh guess what... We did. Thats when I found my physchic powers. The old EL was the funnest game ever. Since I left, I have never found a game to keep my interest as EL did. I have tryed every free game ever made. From 2D to 3D, MMORPG to FPS. Everytime I try to come back to EL there are more updates and more reason to keep me from playing. There was just so much to do back then, you could train skills and not worry about having below average phys/choord. As the pickpoints take that away from you. When you had to train all the skills to be able to wear capes that are now perks. When your levels acually meant something, not how many negative perks you can put up with. There is no well rounded player anymore, the player puts all the pickpoints in nexus so he can use skills. Thus making him behind in phys coord compared to other players. I guess now you just have to pick what you specialize in and smegz0rz the rest of the skills. Maybe it was unbalanced at the time, but everysince server change to pickpoints EL has went on a downward spiral in my opinion.

 

 

 

In the begging, when the game was really unbalanced ofcourse. Money wasn't a problem because you could sell beaver fur for 5k a peice. The higher levels would buy them so they could raise other attributes. I beleive the quests for attributes was best. I sat around all day killing beavers untill I was like 20/20/20 (Attack/Defence/Combat) Then I finally did the quests to find out they were acually fun. I thought I would never quit playing EL. At the time EL was a mature community, rarley did anyone act stupid or scam players. I had dial up at the time EL was the only thing I had to do. When I should of been out having fun in real life I wasted many hours on EL to see my hard work come to an end. I have had tons of great memories on EL with my old friends. Contests were the best. I remember a high level player taking me under his wing when I started, Torek. McMantis was also another one. he helped me with everything. Adivice was essential, now its like all the high levels are jerks who can't take the time to help anyone. Mods are obsessed with their powers. Example, I walk in a tavern where there is 50 summoned gargoyles. I accidently click one trying to reach the NPC, I kill one and get sent to Newbie Helper. Wasn't warned or anything. They were having some kind of gay celebration or something. Yes this writting will be going from the past to present, what can I say I hate writting. I care not to organize it, I just want to be heard. Still to this day when people ask me what is the best mmorpg out there I respond with the old EL, but don't bother its forever gone. With every update EL loses a peice of what was once the best mmorpg ever made! When I try to come back, to this totally differant game. I get flammed in market channel when asking questions, because I was an smeghole/drunk one night and got denoobed. With such responses as " lke askz in teh#jc1 noob Lmoa" Hell I don't know what a smegging orange cape is....I'm stuck in the past. I always think of how much EL used to mean to me.

Edited September 8, 2006 by Street_Ghost

[kl4Uz]

My EL Essay

 

Back in winter 2004/2005 I was just about to quit a job and start a new one two months later. So in the meantime I had quite a bit of spare time and while I do love winter sports, I was still bored. Computer games have always been a hobby of mine and massive multiplayer games and persistent worlds have always fascinated me. Over the years I had tried several massive multiplayer games such as Ultima Online and Dark Age of Camelot and at that time I decided to look for something new and fresh.

 

I remember visiting several web sites focused on online games, among them an Austrian forum focused on hardware and software with a “games” section, called overclockers.at. Several members of that forum recommended games like Eternal Lands and Planeshift. So I started to download these games. I tried Eternal Lands first, had a quick look around on Isla Prima, but had a hard time with navigation and the interface. So after about an hour, I quit the game and tried some others. While some of them looked quite decent (e.g. Planeshift) I didn’t like the atmosphere of the world and the interface at all, so I decided to give Eternal Lands another chance.

 

This time I read the manual on the official web site first, optimized the settings and suddenly the game seemed quite enjoyable. I still encountered some problems, especially how to get food and healing. Fortunately there was always a newbie helper around the beam spot or near the wraith. The same day, I called a friend of mine, michibur, and asked him to download the game aswell and join me, so we would be able to discover the world together and help each other. He did so immediately and we had great fun on Isla Prima.

 

Now while I started to understand the game mechanics, while there were newbie helpers around and while I had a real life friend of mine around me, I doubt I would have started to play as much as I do now, if I hadn’t met Ingeniero. He was only slightly better in terms of skills, but had already played the game for about a month back then. Meeting another, more experienced, player was the best thing that could have happened to me. He told me a lot about the different trades, the places I should stay away from and about life in EL in general.

 

An additional and very important source for information and help were both Fred Penner’s site and Alastrias guide (www.el-manuals.com). Both sites are outdated, but the famous el-cel.com site continues their legacy. If not for these sites, I’d have been stuck several times, since moderators refuse to give out important information to new players, because many parts of the game are meant to be “secret”. In my opinion this information blockade is a major barrier for new players.

 

When I look back at my EL life, it was mainly other players that kept me moving and made me the player I am. People like Malaclypse and Lachesis sparked my interest in the development of the game and what’s actually behind the GUI we are staring at. Other players like brim_steeleater or Bofred teached me how to use my skills and attributes. Most of these people were members of the first guild I joined back then. The guild I had joined was small, but full of nice and interesting people, that helped me a lot to advance. Guilds are probably one of the most important factors for people to stay in this game. If you find a great one, with members, that treat you, being a new player, with respect and show you around, you will most likely stay in the game for a long time. If the guild tries to exploit you, treats you badly and doesn’t teach you the basic rules of behavior, you will most likely leave the game and damage the whole community.

 

Before I come to an end, I want to mention how I play this game today. In 2006 I decided to continue my studies at university, which means I can’t play as much anymore as I used to do. Eternal Lands has become a hobby for the weekends and holidays. Still it’s a very important hobby and I usually play several hours a day, if possible.

 

My conclusion is, that it’s probably a matter of luck, whether you will start to love or hate this game. Eternal Lands has a lot of potential, which is often not visible for the average new player. Because of the pretty challenging game mechanics (e.g. the skills systems) new players have a hard time during their first few days, without any help from other players or so called newbie helpers. So dear newbie helpers/moderators and older players, let’s help the new players and show them our lovely world.

 

- kl4Uz

[dustpuppy]

I started playing about a year ago. The player known as dust asked me to check out this game. After several hints that I should, I finally downloaded Eternal Lands. What immediately stuck me was the graphic quality. Easily as good as many commercial games. Attractive enough to make me look around a bit.

 

I found the tutorial NPC and started the quest. As I walked around performing the requested tasks, I started to watch the barrage of text at the top of the screen. Hints, local talk, channel talk. At the time it all seemed to be confusing. But questions were being asked and answered. I wouldn't need to fumble about quite as blindly now. I learned alot about the game play, the channel structure, in game protocol, and some basic skill information just by watching. With this endless stream of information at my disposal, I would need very little external information sources. A few weeks later I did end up reading through most of the EL site, gaining even more useful bits to add to the in game knowledge.

 

The implementation of a classless system appealed to me very quickly. I believe this, second only to the community of people, is the biggest draw. For me, it also provided a level of addiction not found in a game since the days of 8 bit RPGs. This was the first time, in a very long time, that I had found an honest, open ended game. With the exception of quests, no goals to achieve, no boss to beat, no linear game play. Find something you like and do it. Change your mind if you wish and do something else. Combined with some very nice players and extremely helpful moderators, the addiction was complete. It still is!

 

Because I had seen so much help scrolling past in the channels, I started to answer some questions now. While still watching and learning, I could also help some of the newer players now. This turned out to be addicting as well. To actually contribute actively to the game and the community started to become as much fun as the game play itself. At least for me it was. Passing on some knowledge, and giving a new player a friendly introduction to the game. It was the same as I received. It was only right to pass that along.

 

So now, a year and several updates later, the same things that initially appealed to me and kept me playing, are still keeping me playing. I feel it was, and still is, the people in the game that will encourage new players to stay. The regular updates we receive, the input that is asked for (and actually read!), the beautiful new creatures, armor and weapons that get added, those will always be appealing in a game. But it will be the players and the community that will ultimately keep or lose a "newbie". It's what makes it truly fun.

[solorni]

Oddly enough, my EL journey began after reading an article linked from a blog about the dangerously addictive nature of MMORPG's. I had never heard of these role-playing games before, but the desrciption of the genre intrigued me. So, like a fool, I I decided to see what the fuss was all about. Intending to find a game to try out for an hour or two, I Googled "free MMORPG." I found a directory of such games and read about a few. (I wish I could remember the site name!) The description of Eternal Lands seemed interesting enough, so I clicked to the EL homepage, downloaded the client, and created a character. I watched with interest as my little avatar, Solorni, walked around Isla Prima, getting killed by bunnies and deer.

 

I was hooked. The real-time nature of Eternal Lands was something I had always dreamed about, but never seen before. The graphics were sharp and clear. I was particularly fasicinated with the Isla Prima Tavern--going in and out of a building was such a novelty for me. I remember clicking on the door over and over and smiling with awe. Thus a new EL addict was born, even though as a 26 year-old female elementary school music teacher, I hardly fit the profile of a hard core gamer.

 

My first few weeks as Solorni were confusing, but now when I look back at myself, I laugh. I harvested 79 tiger lillies, and was disappointed that no one wanted to buy them. I continually attacked deer, and continually died. I chased rabbits around for hours at a time, wishing they would just stay still. Also, it must have been right after an update, because Raven had been moved from where the NPC tutorial said I would find her. I spent hours wondering around Tirnwood Vale typing "where is Raven???". But eventually I found her, deposited my 79 tiger lillies, 13 bones, 10 rabbit furs, and 16 gold coins in her storage, and grinned with triumph. I was rich.

 

I did have some frustrations with the game, which with experience and help from other players, were easily overcome. First, I was overwhelmed by the amount of text on the screen in front of me. I could barely see my rabbits over the chatter from channel 1 and and channel 3. (It was before the update where one could x out of a channel. Typing #lc 3 was required.) It was also frustrating to watch others' questions being asked and answered on channel 1, while I had to idea how to speak on the channel. Finally I realized that a @ was needed. The first thing I asked was how to get rid of the channels althogether!

 

My next obstacle was learning how to zoom in and out. I tried to trade with someone at a crowded storage and misclicked on about 7-8 people before hitting my target. Thankfully, the person I was trading with was kind and understanding enough to show me how to zoom.

 

Still, I was plauged by fog during rainstorms. I could barely see what I was doing until I zoomed in. Since I did not want to mess up a something technical beyond my abilty to fix it, I was very reluctant to play with any settings in the client. I asked another player about it, who kindly suggested I disable the "render fog" option. Perhaps the fog option should be turned off as default, as a service to those who do not want to hurt anything because of their limited technical knowledge.

 

The discovery of the encyclopedia was a watershed experience for me. No longer did I need to pepper others with "How do I make a fire essence?" I had a valuable source of knowledge whenever I needed it! Around the same time, I also found Alastria's EL manual, via Google. Having the locations of resources and relative stregnth of animals and monsters was invaluable to me as a newbie.

 

The most important thing I did as a newbie was to join a guild. I set my sights on IRON, since they seemed big, friendly, and active. The requirement then was to have a skill over 25, so I decided to impress them by waiting to have a skill over 26. About 300 goblins later, I joined IRON. It was the best move I could have made. In IRON, I found help with my newbie questions, people to trade with, but most importantly a great group of friends. While my fascination with the Isla Prima Tavern door might have initiated my addiction to EL, my buddies in IRON have kept it alive.

Edited September 9, 2006 by solorni