What’s with Ragnarok Online RPG?
Ragnarok Online
Ragnarok Online or often named as RO, was produced by Gravity Co. Ltd. It is a massive multi-player Online game which was originated from the manga Ragnarok of Le Myoung-Jin and was first set out on August 31, 2002 in South Korea for Microsoft Windows. The game is based on Norse Mythology which means “Fate of gods”, a final war between various forces, thereby followed by the devastation of the world and its rebirth. Its game style focuses on Christianity and embraces some of the Asian cultures. It is a community-driven game wherein the game’s job system helps define the community. Another thing is, you need to purchase loads (which comes in different denominations) to continue playing with this RPG. Yet despite the fact that it is not the largest monthly paying multi-player Online RPG, it still shows off its overall players amounting to 25 million as estimated worldwide, which appeals to be bigger than Warcraft. This game had greatly affected the world of Online gaming. It brought up various ideas which was eventually used by other online games.
Ragnarok Online Gaming
To start with, one must create an account wherein he is free to choose the gender which can be identified through choosing the hair style and the hair color of the character. Upon doing so, he is also obliged to choose the server where his character will be moving about. Four servers are currently working in the International Ragnarok Online gaming namely, Loki, Iris, Chaos and the Sakray test servers. As for the tools to use, both a mouse and a keyboard are required. The screen display consists of a mini map, various menus, a status window which shows the progress of the leveling up and the amount of money the character possesses, and a chat bar below the window to enable players worldwide (of the same servers) to communicate with each other. The communication can either be public or a private chat. Menus also include a window for the items possessed by the characters as well as their gears.
Ragnarok Jobs
There are 41 diverse jobs used in RO. These jobs are divided into different categories and the player himself has the authority of picking out the the job he wants his character to portray. These are as follows:
1)The Novice.
This is the basic class which is largely a mere tutorial class to give way for players to adopt the real feel of the game. In this stage, the character is required to level up in order to gain other skills aside from the Basic Skills this character possesses. Every time the novice levels up, his function skills also increases. When these basic skills reach the level of 9, he is now eligible to alter jobs. This is an opportunity for the players to choose the job he wants for his character unless he wishes to stay that way forever or intends to become a Super Novice.
2)Swordsman.
These are the defenders of Ragnarok Online. They are the strongest physical attackers among the first jobs. They use their strength to defeat monsters and enemies. This job’s skills concentrate on increasing the physical attack power of the character in order to withstand more damage. When one reaches the level of 45, you can now change jobs and can become a Knight or a Crusader out from this class.
3)Mage/Magician.
Mages or magicians are considered weak in combats. They use the power of the elements behind them and use nature in order to beat their enemies. This class mainly depends on their intelligence to throw out strong spells to compensate for the battle. They are most effective in parties with another jobs that are more capable for melee-combats. In continuing with this job, one can become a Wizard or a Sage.
4)Acolyte.
They are the healers of Ragnarok. They devote their lives to following their faith and use this disposition to heal and bless other characters. They implement both white mage, which is totally focused on supportive magic, and a cleric archetype, which mainly focuses on combat implications. This character needs a large party to level up. After leveling up, one can either be a supportive priest or a physical attacking monk.
5)Archer
These are simple ranged attackers that use their skills of the bow in order to shoot their enemies. They lack the affinity and need much dexterity to hit their targets and inflict full damage. They can quell their foes from a safe distance, away from harm. The skills here focus on increasing the speed of the character’s attacks or allow the character to cast multiple strikes simultaneously. One can become a Hunter or a Bard out from this class after leveling up.
6)Merchant.
These characters control the RO’s economy since they can avail discounts from stores and can change the buy or sell prices of NPC stores. They have the skill also to vend any items they want to sell, allowing them to gain profit since they can buy items at a discounted rate. They also have some physical attack power, popularly the Mammonite attack skill that can cause additional damage which can be done through the use of zeny. After this first job, you can proceed on becoming a Blacksmith or an Alchemist.
7)Thief.
Thief archetypes excel in their speed, in order to dodge their enemies and hit them multiple times as fast as possible, without being hit by their foes. They are dependent in their ability to dodge attacks to to stay alive since most enemies cannot touch them because they possess the highest possible flee rate. They are usually not the foremost attackers in parties since they are not that physically strong, compared to swordsmen. You can become a Rogue or an Assassin after this job.
8)Super Novice.
A super novice is a special character class that retains most of the novice features of the class. But in addition to its skill, these characters are able to learn almost all of the skills accompanied with the other first job classes, with the exception of handling weapons novices are not capable with. The disadvantage somehow is its incapability to transcend. Yet the good thing is, this character can get more skill points than any other first class or job characters. It also allows great flexibility on the part of the player in the skills he chooses to learn, that is if he reaches the maximum job level of 99%. This job requires a base level of 45 before obtaining the Super Novice job.
PvP
PvP or Player versus Player is somewhat a hub in RO gaming. In here, there is a place wherein players of different levels and jobs fight with each other. Hitting and casting powers against each other can be done here. Some say, it can test one’s ultimate strength to stand and fight with other characters. However, there is a prescribed job level before a character can join the PvP room.
War of the Emperium
War of the Emperium, abbreviated as WoE, is popularly known as Guild War among players around the world. This is done for two hours on any day of the week, depending on the server. During this time, the maps are set into PvP modes, but somehow there are exemptions. The Seal of Approval skill may allow guilds to attempt, enter and take control of castles available in-game. An Emperium is placed on the fourth floor of each castle and if a guild breaks another guild’s Emperium, then that guild now owns the castle. This breaking of Emperiums continues until the time for guild wars run out. The guild that has maintained control of the castle until the end of the time, will retain its control over the castle until the next WoE takes place again. This provides them access to various benefits like going into the Guild Dungeons which can give the members an absolute advantage in gaining experience and obtaining rare items. This is said to be the most exciting part of the RO game and almost everyone participates in this activity every week.
This Online gaming has been set out to all locales around the world. It greatly hooked up everyone’s attention, especially those who are addicted to Online games. According to one RO fanatic, this is due to the fact that they can feel that they are really in the Ragnarok world and that they are the ones who fight with the enemies or monsters personally. They simply put their souls and hearts to the game, that’s why.