What can MMORPGs teach us about world building?

[fba827]

the further you get from the starting 'hub' the harder the enemies become. and then after a while a new hub should be unlocked as you get far enough.

 

[avin]

Wow says almost nothing about how I create my games.

I'm playing Wow since before AQ. Some areas and places inspire but most Wow dialogues hurt my brains.

 

[avin]

Everything I know in life I learned from MMORPGs

Talk to the guy with the !
There's always 10 more wolves
Red means stop, Green means ignore
If it's not meant to be killed, why is it made of meat and XPs?
Everything has a bag of treasure
Yelling things in public places gets you free stuff
Never sell to the shopkeep
Always sell to other players
If you run far enough, it'll forget you exist
Gold grows on farms
Theres still 10 more wolves
Walking is for n00bs
Pies are for the elite
Guards don't
There's always somthign bigger
Don't cross the streams
Healing potions are collapsable
Theres another 10 wolves
7h15 15 7h3 c0m0n 70ngu3
Theres always a dark elf
Animals have random numbers of organs
Yelling your name and level in a bar will make you friends
You can buy XP
Sure I'll give you the Mcguffin, just slay me 10 more wolves

(I'm sure there's more, but I'm tired)

You are a carebear, don't you?

Where's the ganking? Where's the QQ?

 

[Leatherhead]

And I started writing this to correct you, but it occurs to me that in this WoW teaches us a very important lesson about worldbuilding and GMing in general: don't go crazy on detail. Get just enough to give the flavor to the players and concentrate on the meaty bits.

I would have to agree with this. The reason that the world is "small" is because they left out most of the unimportant boring parts.

Who actually uses an entire planets worth (or more) of detailed maps for their games anyway? Over the years one might accumulate that much. But most of the time, miles of game world pass in minutes of real life description.

 

[fireinthedust]

I think the 4e magic item price guides (adventurer's vaults) really work for MMORPGs.

However, the idea of craft skills and being able to create a person's own items, that's kinda cool. Like, more to pick up than just gold and items. Meat, ingredients, etc. Also, though, having a 4e chart for stuff that drops on creatures would be cool. I like the treasure packets, but what goes in them... well, it'd be useful to have a reference table.


I like the idea of a world that exists at its own level, not the players' level. I have a setting that is evolving with them, but currently they've had to play smart rather than attack the werewolves in the Thieves' guild; to avoid attacking the level 11 Ogre Warhulk.
Basically, having places that are that level even when the PCs are not, that is kinda cool. Gives a sense that things have continuity.

To that end, I've got my campaign based on the 3 tiers. The local Tier so far is like the one in the DMG (a bit different). The next level, they'll be in my setting's version of Sigil-meets-Asgard (from Thor comics), but they have to unlock that city for their world; which involves quests to various places around the world(s) through portals, dealing with the rise of demon princes and armies of Gith and Giants and Drow who'll be running around the place. After that, they'll be epic; working out the details, but basically more Exarchs walking around (some of them also, I hope), and they'll be fighting Tiamat, Vecna, Orcus and others (Cthulhu, Ilsensine, etc., if I play my cards right), all of this throughout the Cosmos.

However, they'll still be able to go back to, say, Winterhaven or Thunderspire Labyrinth when they have to. Thunderspire might be their seat of power by that point, rather than where they get sold as slaves, but you get what I mean.

Which means I've got ideas for cities in the Underdark, and NPCs of note, and that I've been using those statblocks even now.

 

[Nifft]

Animals have random numbers of organs

Looks more like something I learned in the Far Realms.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Jack99]

I would be curious how many in-game days would pass if you were to walk (not run) an Everquest character on a tour of just all the surface zones (especially if your character stopped to rest for 6 to 8 hours each day). I think you'd be surprised just how long it would take.

At a "quick" count, there are rougly 650 Everquest zones; though many of them are dungeons.

Despite >700 days played, I forgot that there was an EQ-time that moves differently than normal time.

/hangs head in shame

 

[Bumbles]

Speaking of small...wasn't there a quote about how Ultima Online was like 4 times the size of North America in the game? I know there was a bit about the time, but I swear there was something about how big it was in virtual size...

Oh well, I have no idea how big WOW is, though there were some guys who hooked up a running machine to cross the world on foot, but there are some things to learn.

Have a sense of history. There are so many places in WOW that show the past of the world.

Include little amusing details. Pan around while flying over the old world, look at all the things you can see. Dancing Troll Village, the Ironforge Airport, the Dragoncave.

I wish they could have some of that stuff in Outlands and Northrend, but with flying...apparently not.

 

[Vicente]

Well, in general you could say that you need to make the worlds bigger. I mean you can get from one end of a MMORPG world to the other end in a fairly short time, even on foot (Hours at most)

A world that size might be problematic for RPG's.

You have to play Eve Online then, that MMORPG is well, crazy big.

 

[Dykstrav]

Well, in general you could say that you need to make the worlds bigger.

To me, Age of Conan feels bigger than it really is. I actually like how each zone has a "gate" of sorts that allows you to see a wilderness stretching off into infinity without having to cross all of it yourself.