Hello, I am Twilight a developer of Knights of the Ni. I come here today to present to you a 2D MMORPG called Drasil, in search for assistance in the graphics department. Drasil is set in the medieval/early industrial time period, and gives off a classical, early video game graphic style. Before I get into the job field and description mumbo jumbo, I want to give you all a healthy amount of information on what drasil is now, and what we plan for it to be in the future. I want you all to get to know Drasil.

General Information
Drasil ORPG (http://www.drasil.net) is an ORPG project aimed at giving players a large world that they are able to live and change as they play. Offering players vast options for player depth such as politics, religion, businesses and war, Drasil encompasses a large range of options for deep player customization.

Drasil Development Team
Sandopan
Mapper, Graphics Designer, Content Developer.

Nlky
Content Developer.

Twilight
Content Developer.

Timothy/Timo
Lead Programmer.

Tyler
Programmer

Story
In the times before the Great Thunder Wars, it is said the land was one continent. One massive land, of mountains and fields so vast that even the eyes of the Old Gods had trouble watching them all. This continent, pure and unravaged by war, was home to many races of creatures, all living in total ignorance of one another. But after the Great Thunder Wars, when the Old Gods became enraged with their children, who had gained favour amongst mortals, and fought them with earthquakes and tidal waves all across the world, it is said the world split into two continents. Mountains plunged into the seas, plains became deserts, and land became scarce. The New Gods, having defeated their parents in the end, set about to save as many of their mortal wards as they could. Islands were raised up out of the depths the Old Gods had created, and new homes were established. There was room enough for all those who lived upon the surface of the world. The New Gods protected their lessers and helped them expand and propogate. But time wore on, and the New Gods became tired and no longer watched over the mortals. Soon thereafter, the Many Wars began. Elves warred with Humans, Dwarves warred with Orcs, and the known world fell into chaos. After two centuries of warfare, the Humans finally were able to break the Elvish armies in the Dying Fields, and turned them to rout. A decade of slaughter followed. No longer able to resist the Humans, the Elves were nearly exterminated- their only refuge the deepest of their forest sanctums. The Dwarves, defeated by the Orcs, dug deep into the stone and never again came forth. Orc and Human met many time during the years after the wars, and eventually the Humans again used their numerical superiority to break their foes. Forced into the most desolate lands in the West, the Orcs fell from power and were no longer considered enemies. The Humans had established hegemony over all the Western Continent. But what of the Eastern Continent? Did it suffer a similar fate? The Humans of the West could not help but dream greedily of the riches of the East. But no ship had ever sailed deep into the East and returned. Dreams faded, and the West focused on domestic matters, seemingly forgetting all about the unknown continent. Drasil. The Eastern Continent. Forgotten by the New Gods, Drasil had been left to fend for itself in the chaos following the Great Thunder Wars. Unlike in the West, the races of Drasil did not band together. Instead, great nations were formed by like-minded leaders of all races. Drasil saw its own wars, but its jagged mountain peaks and lush forests kept the new nations at bay. Four major nations were born: Vagharast in the far East, a great Empire rules by the Twin Emperors. Primarily occupied by Elves and Orcs, Vagharast is a massive nation of sparse population, kept together mainly by the force of the Twin Emperors. In the West of Drasil, three nations stand above all others. Olorun sits in the South, it's mighty navy patrolling the seaways of its island empire. A proud people, Olorunii are mostly Orcs and Dwarves. They love money and trade, and they are reknowned for their advanced science. Renolus and Matharia lay to the North, constantly at each other's throats. Although predominantly Human, both kingdoms are home to all four of the major races, though Matharia is known for its thriving Elven population while Renolus is famed for its ties with the Dwarves of the High Mountain. Peace does not grace these two nations for long, and war is no stranger to either of them.

Olorun, Renolus, Matharia. These three nations sit on the brink of something monumental. Something none of them had ever dreamed of. Drasil. The Eastern Continent. Forgotten by the New Gods, but not forgotten by all.

Story Evolution
The storyline is as much a living entity as the players that dwell within it. Each player makes his or her mark on the ever expanding storyline, and completes major quest chains for his or her affiliation (Hero (Positive) Anti-Hero (Negative) or Mercenary (Neutral)) to bring the game to one of four possible endings; Salvation of Drasil, Destruction of Drasil, Mutual Chaos or a Stalemate of all three. Players choose an affiliation early on, and their affiliation is hidden from player view, leaving it up to them how they portray and conduct themselves, and whither or not to share their affiliation with their friends, or hide it form their foes.

Players are able to shape the storyline by completing major quests (One-Time Only!) that may include one player or many. Each of these quests has a positive, negative and neutral outcome and are large game events. When the final quest is complete, it will be cannon with the previous storyline quests, and sets the tone for the End of Drasil's storyline.

At this point, Drasil's storyline will be updated with the events of the player's, including player names, and appropriate action taken within the game (Memorials, Statues) of notable questers. Drasil's updates will slow down as work begins on Drasil's expansion release, and with it the new un-finished storyline continuation. The expansion will be greatly affected in both lore and setting by the players that competed in the End of Drasil.

Player Creation
Players are encouraged to create custom items, shops, businesses, homes, towns, cities and governments. With such a strong economical backing, players are given the ever-present option of corporate corruption and greed, as well as economic salvation and war.

Player shops and item creation are handled online within The Forge, an online system of armor and weapon creation and retail. Items bought on The Forge are sent to the player's bank. For a player to sell items on The Forge, they must have place enough money into their Forge account (Alternate Bank Holding) to supply the materials to create each item they sell. Generating profit from these sales are the only way to guarantee market success and continued business. However, material prices fluctuate with the economy, and the business must evolve to shape these new prices and demands.

Businesses, homes, towns and cities are handled via Player Housing, which is created and managed by game staff, and is not automated. Different home models are available, and the build-time for each varies according to home size and complexity. Players may have an NPC put inside a home (any real estate) that links the user to their shop webpage or other information on services. Businesses may also contain banks (I.E. mining operation drop-offs for Forge supplies)

Player towns and cities are created when atleast three homes are within one visible screen of a map. Three homes are considered a village, and they must elect an official to represent them. This official may purchase additional buildings (NPC Shops, Banks, Services, Extra Homes, Etc) for their town. With additional buildings, comes the rank of Town and City. Player real estate may be bought and constructed on any map that has room for the building being constructed, and is not limited to private maps or areas. Buildings may contain locks, fences and NPCs.

Players are encouraged to fill a governing system for their Nation (Default is Oloron) within which they must create laws and establish order. Ranks within the Judicial system are Guard, Guard Captain, Judge, Senate and Ruler. Powers of each rank:

Guard
Arrest Player, Jail Player, Enforce Law

Guard Captain
Arrest Player, Jail Player, Enforce Law, Organize Guards

Judge
Hold Trial, Banish Player (Temporary Ban), Jail Player, Exile (IP Ban) Player, Execute Player (Character Deletion)

Senate
Create and Pass new Laws, Consul Ruler

Ruler
All Lower Judicial Powers, Declare War, Set Tax Rate

Laws are created by players and enforced by players. The Drasil ToS are enforced by GMs. GMs have no power over the player's judicial system. It is encouraged that laws are passed giving fair trial, and courtrooms are provided in most large cities.

Main Features
Politics

Become a town politician. Create and vote on laws for the masses, enforce user-created laws as a Guard, manage public spending as a scribe, rule over court cases as a Judge or jury member or control and change the system of Government as a King. Transform your government into a Dictatorship, Democracy, Republic or Monarchy as you aid or control your citizens and officials.




Religion



Worship (To a Healthy Level!) an in-game God or Goddess while roleplaying through your selected Religion. Become a Worshipper, Acolyte, Priest or High Priest as you hold mass, set religion rules and doctrine and guide your devoted to enlightenmend or destruction. Order the construction of temples or demolish the old.


Business



Purchase, zone and construct your own in-game store or business. Create and sell products to the eager consumer and reap the rewards of a successful business. Hire other players as employees to mine, forage or forge your products or become a bandit and aim to tear the operations apart.


PvP

In a game set in full PVP you must always be wary. Players are encouraged to create laws to outlaw murder and assault (PvP) within town and city territory, but the threat is real and constant. Outside of protected towns and territories is a free-for-all for the unwary. PvPing another player outside designated Arenas and Gladiator Pits is suggested only for those that wish to live on the run once a player knows who you are.


RvR, NvN

You joined your religion for a reason, you can see the path to enlightenment. Why must other religions shout blasphemous lies of divine enlightenment of their own? It is within the power of each Religion's High Priests to decide which religion to agree with and which is a faction not to tolerate. Conducting a crusade against another religion is carried out in the Divine Highlands, a place of sanctity and peace or death and war. One Nation cannot truly be the strongest unless it encompasses the globe. As King, set your sights on an enemy nation and declare war. In a ruthless game of capture the flag, capture land from your enemy nations to expand your nation, or send your troops to defend your final bastion from assault.


Homestead

Every weary warrior needs a place to call home. In Drasil it is no different. Purchase or harvest the materials for and construct your own buildings anywhere there is available land. Inns, Businesses, Homes, Meeting Places, Guild Halls, Temples or Taverns. If you can think of a structure and a purpose, you can construct it. We'll leave how you use it to your imagination.


Quest

We dare you to find an NPC not in dire need of some help! Quest for experience, prestige or for a little extra coin. Completing quests will add to your Legend, a viewable portion of your character on Drasil's website that lists your greatest accomplishments or in some cases disastrous failures. Questing not only aids your character, but your community! Each player that completes a quest is remembered by the game. If Joe Farmer needs 10 Logs of Wood and ten players complete the quest, he now has 100 logs. Once an NPC gets enough materials, they may decide to build new structures in your town or sell new products.


Class and Party Based Combat

You decide what your character plays as. Weither it be the cliche slew of class choices or a mix of many. With enough training and questing, you can learn the spells and tricks of any class you desire by searching for and collecting the mysterious mana shards. With a fixed amount hidden in Drasil every six months, it's not a matter of how skilled but how quick. Join party's in your search for mana shards or to run dungeons and complete quests. Drasil will encompass many dungeons as it grows, who knows what may lurk at the bottom of each.





With so much to offer players that vary from intense roleplayers to casual quest or PvP'ers, Drasil has a gameplay style for you. The fastest way to achieve it is to build it.

F.A.Q
These are basic questions that are frequently asked. As more questions are asked, this FAQ will expand.



Basic



Q: How much does Drasil cost monthly?
A: Drasil will be Free-To-Play forever.



Technical



Q: What are the minimum requirements?
A: 600MHz Intel® Pentium® or equivilant

128MB RAM
DirectX 8 compatible Graphics Card
Mouse and keyboard
100MB Hard Disk Space

Windows 98, 2000, XP or Vista (In Compatibility Mode)



Q: Is there Multi-Language Support?

A: There is very, very basic support for other languages. While game messages and functions can be switched to other languages (German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Swedish) quest and NPC descriptions, instructions and text remain in Drasil's primary language; English.



Q: My account was hacked and I lost all my items! Help me out!

A: Account hacking is looked at in a per-case regularity. Drasil Staff will NEVER ask for your password! If someone asks for your password claiming to be Drasil, Knights of Ni or Website Staff take a screenshot and report them immediately. In-Game politics is not designed to handle Terms of Services breaches so please do not bother in-game officials with hacking related problems.



Q: Will Drasil work on my Mac, Linux, Solaris.. etc

A: Drasil is and will remain a Windows-Only game. While there are reports of Drasil working in Windows Emulators for Mac and Linux, we have no tested nor do we endorse running them in emulators.



Q: I've been curious about how games are made. What language is Drasil programmed in?
A: Drasil is programmed in VisualBasic6 with DX8. It is powered by the vbGore engine.



Q: When will [feature] be implemented?
A: Please check the programming changelog and schedule. We work continuously to bring you the best available content as fast as we can. Our staff are always working to serve Drasil, and you.





Game



Q: What time period is Drasil set in?
A: Late Medieval to Early Industrial.



Q: Why should I donate to you or use the premium store?

A: With money available we are able to upgrade our hardware as well as hire freelancers to improve graphics or programming.



Q: Why is there a premium store? That's an unfair advantage!

A: Our premium store only offers cosmetics and vanity items. No stat-altering items are included. Players with more available money than others will not have an advantage in Drasil. Costumes, Wings and Strange Hats are among the things that you will find in the premium store, along with materials that do not adjust combat for players. Drasil is and will remain Free-To-Play.

Screenshots
We have a bunch, but a lot of them are old. Here is the most recent, fresh off of the developer blog:

We need artists so we can move on to custom graphics, instead of free to use.

Job Offerings
Pixel Artists
Will produce various pixeled artwork for the game such as Sprites, Tiles, Equipment, Icons, ect.
Concept Artists
The content developers will give you a detailed description of a piece of contept are, and you will simply create it.

Misc. Information
To apply, reply to this topic or email me.

My Email: twilight@drasil.net
Official Website: http://www.Drasil.net
Developer Blog: http://www.drasildev.blogspot.com
Drasil Wiki (a bit outdated): http://www.vbgore.com/Drasil

Edited by Drasil Dev - 02 September 2008 at 7:28pm