So we all know they game will launch, 4 hours later it'll be down for maintanence. (Come on, we all know thats whats going to happen. Not being a hater, it's just a fact of MMO's.)
What is your goal in those first four hours?
Get as high as you can?
Start amassing as much wealth as you can? (At level 7)
Run around as fast as you can and try to get the most "World First Discoveries"? (Are server first and world first disco's in? I hope so, as long as they aren't released in Alpha's and Beta's.)
Form you guild and purchase your hall?
I'm a "follow the tutorial/quest line" type of player for the first 2 or 3 play sessions. Then I usually take off on my own. So those first 4 hours for me will be spent following the tutorial/quest line as designed by the devs.
Game will launch and my goal will be to create my characters and reserve all my names. Then watch the craziness for a bit, log off and come back in a week to see what's going on..
or..
Reserve my names, take a few weeks off work, play 20hrs a day and get as many levels as possible as a buffer, burn out, take a week off gaming and then come back and see what's going on..
I'll take my sweet time through character creation - unless I've already got a very clear idea of what I want from beta - and hopefully join some guild activity to celebrate launch, be it leveling, exploring, recruiting...
I honestly hope there will be no official "server firsts" in Pantheon, as I find they encourage toxic competition.
I want to hop right into the gameplay. I like to find out what abilities I like, what works well in combat, what is necessary for progression, etc. I enjoy the character creation process and exploring new locations, but the guts of it all is finding a way to hop into that grind and start progressing.
Create a character and enter the world.
Two accounts, so I'll be helping the wife get her character started on her account as well.
From there, like always well run arround getting to know all of the home town.
I would be real suprised if eather of us hit lvl 2 in day 1 unless we're locked into some bogus tutorial for 2 3 levels. (Oh god I hope not)
When I first start a new MMO I just get used to the controls and the UI. I take it slow and just learn as much as I can about mechanics and the layout of the noobie area I am in. Considering a MMO is basically a never ending game, I really do not ever have a set goal that I will consider end game. The game doesn't end and I could decide to stop playing any time. I just take it as it comes and try to have fun.
1. Spend a good while on char creation.
2. Login to my main
(a) create a bunch of '/ooc' FAQ buttons
'/ooc The Griffin does *not* want to be your friend ... please RUN from it'
'/ooc Re-bind auto-attack AWAY from 'a' BEFORE you add to the impressive corpse pile at the bank!'
'/ooc Nobody 'stole' your stuff ... you DIED ... go find your body!'
(b) Get to level 2 and make sure to explore the starter city / noobie yard extensively!
3. /wave at any VIPs I see!
4. Stock up on caffeine tablets ready for the weekend!
Well, I think my first gaming session will not even take 4 hours, because of a lack of time.
But I think a huge amount of the playtime on my first session I will have to wait at the login screen. Also the character creation process will take some time. I'm not a perfectionist in character creation and I will by far not use as much time for it as other will, but at least some decission should be made right.
In the short amount of time where the game is stable and I'm in, I will try to learn how to control my character and do my first fights. Also maybe learn the first parts of the perception system, the crafting etc. Nothing really in the depth, only a first look at everything.
Next steps will by finding some people to play with and then begin to explore the world and having my adventures there.
Fluffy and I obviously are on the same page.
I will be on character creation looking at the possible race/class combinations and when I finally pick out what I want I will spend a lot of time on appearance if the system gives a decent range of choices.
Not just for one character - if I have enough character slots I will create one for each major group role - tank, DPS, healer and perhaps buff/crowd control/other. Or maybe one for each craft.
I can speed-level as well as most but being the first or second level-cap on a server is not my goal. I would far rather find a guild and be able to provide crafting help for as many crafts as possible, or be able to fill in whatever role a group needs.
Dorotea Rent-a-Toon. The class you need at a fair price (TM).
One caveat - if there is a use for people like us that will already know the game from testing and the forums to help true newcomers I would be quite willing to jump right in and spend the hypothetical four hours in world/zone chat greeting people and trying to be useful. I play a LOT (no school or job - retired) so I can afford to "waste" a few days not working on my own characters - they will catch up.
Create my characters...that will take some time, depending on how many choices we have with customization.
Then log in with one of them, not my main though. I know i screw up my first character, I always do. So i learned to create a "first explorer".
And when in game finally, i will be overly exited. Looking around in awe and start exploring, try to kil a few mobs.
When i feel a little confident (after a few hours) I will log in my main and start working on her.
Maybe an hour creating character and exploring the features of that UI. Hoping I can remember the style/look I liked that i saw I think 4, or was it 5 clicks ago? and is it really better than the one I looked at 2 or 3 clicks prior? heh
Then getting in tutorial if any to get used to movements,
then right into the world to look around and get used to where everything is.
Hail random or all NPC's. eavesdrop or snoop on other players fighting. Hail other players, see what thyey know or have learned.
Get lost in a dark tunnel for 30 minutes trying to leave Surefall Glade because I am a human with no nightvision...
I'll make my characters, adjust my UI to my liking, find out how much backpacks cost and where to get them, then floor it to see how far I can can get. I'm not necessarily in any rush to get through the leveling process but I know how early excitement gets the better of me with new releases.
Oh and mash the Sense Heading skill if it exists.
weebm said:Truth be told, run around lost and cursing. Where is this? How do I do that? I NEED A MAP!
LOL. That's me! Then I'll take a deep breath and explore everywhere!