Life Is Feudal: MMO
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Life is Feudal: MMO | |
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Developer(s) | Bitbox Ltd. |
Publisher(s) | Xsolla Inc. |
Mode(s) |
Life is Feudal: MMO is an upcoming[1] massively multiplayer online role-playing game in a medieval setting, developed by indie studio Bitbox Ltd. and published by Xsolla.[2]
Gameplay
As an ideological successor to the game Life is Feudal: Your Own, Life is Feudal: MMO embodies the characteristics of a medieval setting with full terraforming of the environment, free construction, a branched system of crafts, survival elements, a non-armored combat system and realistic physics.
The distinctive feature of Life is Feudal: MMO from its multiplayer predecessor, Life is Feudal: Your Own, is a stable and pre-generated world with an area of 21x21 km with the future possibility of almost unlimited expansion and opportunity to form an individual system of economics and politics.[3][4]
Terraforming and mining[5]
Life Is Feudal has implemented a system of complete terraforming of the surrounding landscape. This means that the surrounding terrain and landscape can be completely changed by the players themselves. The in-game terrain is divided into cells, each of which is assigned a value by which it is possible to know its height relative to sea level. In Life is Feudal terrain can be can be modified by either lowering or raising the tile by 0.1 from its height. When lowering terrain the players gains a chunk of material removed from the ground while it costs 1 chunk of material in raising the ground. However, only soft ground material can be raised or lowered and there are limitations in modifying the terrain depending on the fall off mechanics of the material.
Players can dig tunnels, create canyons, mounds, lower and raise the ground according to their own needs. The extraction of resources for crafting also intersects with the terraforming system: in order to obtain metal, players will have to dig and strengthen the mine, in the depths of which there will be iron ore or another metal player needs.
Social and political system
Gameplay Life Is Feudal encourages team cooperation. In order to achieve the better counteraction against the aggressive environment, players are having a tendency to unite into guilds and clans. This feature allows players to divide duties between community members and, therefore, fasten the in- game progress. A successful establishing of a guild requires, at least, ten people. The guild itself is based by erecting a monument - a structure in the form of a sword thrust into the ground. [6]
After the construction, a certain amount of land property or a claim will be held by guild. From now on, the land, protected by the claim, will be inviolable to other players. Company of players, protected by monument, will no longer can be harassed by trespassers because this will entail the acquisition of the status of the Criminal, as well as the lowering of karma(see below).
An exception to the rule is only the onset of the Day of Judgment.
To maintain the land claim, the monument must be regularly presented with sacrifices with valuable items. In the presence of systematic offerings, the radius of action of the monument and the claim will increase and spread. In the case of absence of systematic sacrifices, the guild risks to lose the monument, which is fraught with the loss of all guild lands. The monument itself can be improved with time, this will allow the guild to expand their claim further.
In total, several types of monuments are distinguished:[7]
Name | Minimal Claim Diameter | Maximum Claim Diameter radius | Required amount of players |
---|---|---|---|
10 | 30 | 10 | |
30 | 50 | 20 | |
50 | 100 | 40 | |
100 | 150 | 80 |
Another important component of social interaction is the element of karma, which makes possible to determine the alignment of the character. Depending on the actions of the player, his karma can be lowered or increased. For example, if a player kills innocent people, marauds on the remnants of cities, invades foreign lands or robs graves, the indicator of his karma will be relentlessly reduced. This is fraught with the acquisition of the status of Criminal[8], which allows any player to kill and rob the holder of the status without the risk of losing karma himself, as well as a serious decrease in skills after death.[9]
Economic system
The basis of the economic system of Life is Feudal: MMO is the so-called "Trading posts."[10]A trading post can be built by any player at any point of the map. Any player who has access to a trading post will be able to store a few of his belong in his personal cell.
The main functionality of a trading post is the ability to put on sale things that lie in the player's personal cell in this trading post or the purchase of things from other players.
An important feature: when buying things, players must independently bring money to that trading post and then export the purchased goods from the trading post.
In addition, in trading posts it will be possible to sell valuable things to the Crown and receive for them the gold coins of the Crown.
In the current version of the game, developers are testing an advanced system of trading posts, which will allow players and guilds to tax private claims, storage of things at the post, and collect additional commission for placing an announcement about the sale in the Trade post.[11]
Battle System[12]
Melee damage system takes 2 important physics measurements: mass and velocity. While mass is simply an item attribute, speed is a whole another story.
Every weapon has its own unique set of damaging nodes and each group deals a certain type of damage. Players can perform 4 types of directional attacks:
- Left to right swing
- Right to left swing
- Overhead attack
- Thrust
Depending on attack direction a certain group of damaging nodes become active and will deal damage. During an attack animation damaging nodes track their positions every 32 ms and connect their current position with their position 32 ms ago resulting in a damaging vector. The longer that vector - the faster that node was traveling. If that vector crosses a body part of a victim, then a hit will be detected and further damage calculations will occur. These damage calculation will measure the length of a vector that triggered a hit and will convert it into a speed relative to the victim.
In order to give players a chance to test their might, there was made an event called "Judgement Hour". When this event comes into action, the protection of the monument is suspending. Therefore, as a result of that, villages and cities can be robbed or destroyed without any consequences.
Skill Cap[13]
In Life is Feudal, all skills can not be higher than a certain value.
In order to manage your skills properly and distribute them in a way that more suits current character there are 3 Skill lock buttons available in a Skill book:
- Skill Up. Current skill will increase and will never decrease.
- Skill Down. Current skill will never increase and will decrease if Skill Cap is hit.
- Skill Lock. Current skill will neither increase nor decrease.
Plot
Universe
The main storyline of Life is Feudal: MMO goes through the two events: the plot of the mysterious divine intervention which has led to an instant disappear of the greatest empire known to the World - the Vulpic Empire and a constant memory black out of its citizens, followed after that incident. Still, due to some extraordinary reasons, beliefs and religion of people managed to make it through all stages of cataclysm. According to the official lore, the world of mortals, Sparksvaard, rests upon the branches of the World Tree. The overall Creator of it happens to be unknown. One day Svefnii, the Sleeping God, the one who blamed for starting the cataclysm, will awaken and plunge the universe into the new chaos, which will leave nothing behind and is going to be the end of the known world. The World Tree is a tree of immense size. The worlds of Elgverden – all the worlds of the inhabitable universe – are borne upon its branches. It is believed that the branches of this tree can be seen in each of the worlds, but at the very least, they can be seen in the world of people, Sparksvaard. One of the branches has been found at Abelle - the successor of the Vulpic Empire. Most of the survivors made it here, hoping to start a new society within the Realm. Therefore, the main objective of the game is to establish a kingdom which will not be an inferior to the former one.[14]
Sparks and Gods
Spark is the intangible source of life implanted in material bodies by The Forgotten Creator and Source of Being. It is the ethereal essence that lives on when the person it is a part of dies. In other words: the soul.
Every person (or Lung) has a Spark. A Lung is a person endowed with a Spark.
List of Gods:
1.Ehrideity
2. Sleeper, Svefnii
3. Aori Goldenhanded
4. Gloom
5. Holza the Spinstress
6. Kallente
7. Amate-Maksha, the Sunmaiden
8. Velent-Elianne, Mother-Night
9. Terskel and the Three
10. Jodenande, the Dead Maiden
11. Jomfrutotte
12. Sófaþek-king
13. The Ferryman
Races[15]
Gottlungs
The Gottlungs were the central people and the holders of power in the Vulpian Empire. This explains their disregard for the other nations. It is rumored among them that the Khoors eat captured children, while the northerners take their own daughters' hands in marriage. Some even believe that the other peoples descended from wild beasts, while the Gottlungs were created as they are at the foundation of the world. Mostly, though, they deride only the Khoors, while they treat the Slavards with a kind of respect.
Clothing and Architecture
The Gottlungs wear the mark of the Sleeping God on their breasts. As the most advanced and civilized of the peoples, the Gottlungs wear the most intricate, fashionable clothing. Their women wear dresses covered in lace and frills, and their men wear loose shirts and vests or sleeveless jackets. Unlike the rough straps used by the northerners, the belts worn by the Gottlungs are long and thin, often nearly touching the ground, and they are adorned with intricate, modestly sized buckles. Their buckles are often adorned with the Eye of the Sleeper.
Their men, as a rule, wear only dark colors (white and red being the exceptions to this rule), while their women wear brighter colors.
Gottlung women use cosmetics, especially powder, with which they whiten their faces, necks, chests, and arms. Those people considering it immodest to bring out the lips, so their women usually direct attention to their eyes and cheekbones.
Men cut their hair rather short, with a bowl cut, but often let it grow long. They often wear mustaches. Beards are much less common. A Slavard will just "let his beard go," but a Gottlung is more likely to keep it short and trimmed.
Gottlungs tattoo their bodies. They may use small emblems of the Sleeping God, or images that encapsulate the personal history or character of their owner, but they most frequently use incantations in the common and Gottlung tongues – though the meanings of the most ancient have been forgotten – and quotes from religious texts or other religious sources.
The Gottlungs pay great attention to their apparel. Clothes indicate not only their wearer's status but also their wearer's vocation.
Gottlungs are not nomads. They have large families and build massive framed houses on solid rock foundations. The walls of these houses are made of stone, wood, or wattle and daub, and the roofs are covered with tiles or straw. These homes are large and spacious, up to 4 stories tall. The Gottlungs also have strong stone castles.
Every town and village has temples to the Sleeping God. These temples are short, squat stone structures, though there may be exceptions. The windows of these temples are upside-down and decorated with stained glass in various shades of red.
Gotlung weapons and armor
Suits of armor, chain mail, swords, pole war hammers, bows, and crossbows.
Khoors
The wild, cruel nomads who live on the steppes with their long-haired little horses. They are rather short in stature, covered in hair, and walk with a seesaw gait.
Clothing and Architecture
Everyday clothing for the Khoors includes boots and vests intertwined with laces and ropes, puffy hats, and laced leather bracers.
The Khoors do not build temples, but they have burial mounds throughout the steppes. The Khoors build them on places where especially bloody and fierce battles have been fought, places where many warriors have died. For it is not possible to grant so many warriors a proper funeral pyre, as there is not even enough fuel on the steppe for such a blaze. They leave gifts for the "ghost warriors" (those never given a funeral pyre) on the mounds, including horse skulls – thus giving them ghost horses for their journeys – and weapons, especially old weapons that have seen many battles and are no longer useful to the living. The Khoors consider the unburied warriors the guardians of the steppe. At night, they wander the Khoorsian lands on their dead horses, scaring away foreigners and entering their countrymen's dreams to warn them about impending invasions. But these warriors have not been laid to rest. They are trapped in the world of the living, a place unsuitable for them. And so the Khoors are not only "equipping" the dead men when they give them slain horses and old weapons – they are also appeasing them.
Bonfires must never be lit near the mounds, for it is not good to remind these fallen warriors that they never received a proper funeral pyre. Any unfortunate traveler who does light a fire near one may attract evil spirits as his persecutors and for the rest of his life suffer as they plague him with nightmares and demand their funeral pyres. All in all, the Khoors consider it a bad idea to spend the night close to a mound. The dead might decide to arrange a particularly "exciting" night for those sleeping nearby.
The Khoors' dwellings are the least defended of all the peoples'. Few trees grow on the steppe, the rocks are too large for construction, and animal skins make a very weak wall. The Khoors must often spend the night under the open sky, away from any shelter at all. When this happens, fire is the only way to keep the wild animals and the cold away. Under these conditions, the Khoors have developed a special sensitivity to this element. They continually thank this "younger sibling of the sun" for the help it gives to mortals.
Khoor weapons and armor
Khoorsian armor is simple and straightforward. It is designed to be of minimal weight and provide maximal speed. For this reason, it is made of skins and leathers.
However, it does sometimes feature metal parts. These mainly include light chainmail and wide metal plates fastened to leather belts covering the chest, shoulders, and back. The strongest and most agile warriors can also add a skirt of modestly sized metal plates joined by ring mail, which covers their legs to the knees or even lower, as well as a forged helmet with a terrifying iron mask.
Slavards
The Slavards are made up of multiple related tribes who inhabit the northern and northeastern parts of the known world. This is a harsh and hardy people, accustomed to hard labor, eager to write glorious sagas, and always ready for a good fight, a good feast, and a voyage by sail or by sleigh.
The Slavards are coarse, simple people, not picky when it comes to clothing or food and certainly not effusive when it comes to emotions. Young Slavard men are tall, muscular, and wide of shoulders, while in old age they become quite bearlike. Their women are also strong of build, but with striking figures and beautiful, charming faces. Slavards are fair of hair, skin, and eyes and easily burned by the sun. Many of them have red hair, which is considered the light of Svefnii's forge. Redheads are given special treatment, as they are considered to be people predestined to perform important (though not always good) deeds. Redheads hold positions of authority and are feared and respected. When they speak, people listen, and so a good number of them become priests or prophets.
The Slavards once considered dark hair and dark eyes to be unseemly. Dark features were the marks of slaves and foreigners. But times have changed, and over the past centuries, the Slavards have lived as neighbors and subjects of the Empire – and so a good number of Slavards now have dark hair themselves. Brunettes no longer have to expect suspicious glances as they walk the streets of Slavard settlements. However, fair or red tones remain central to the Slavard concept of beauty.
Girls and young women from the north do not cover their heads, but they always braid their hair. Married women are expected to cover their hair, or at least tie it up with a ribbon. There is no standard hair custom for Slavard men, though, so many different styles exist: Some grow their hair halfway down their backs and braid it, while others shave their heads or give themselves a bowl cut. A man's beard, though, is an essential part of his appearance. Shaving one's beard off is not forbidden, but every Slavard, even those born in the time of the Empire, knows that a beardless man is hardly a man.
Clothing and Architecture
Slavards dress simply and practically. The most common dress for men is spacious leather or homespun woolen pants and a shirt, with a jacket sewn of two skins and/or a hooded fur cloak over top during the cold season. Slavard men wear knitted stockings or leggings made of fabric strips, tanned leather boots, shoes of tree bark, and fur caps on their heads. When working, they wear aprons of fabric or leather. The belt is the most important – and often the most valuable – item in any self-respecting Slavard's wardrobe. Purses, wallets, keys, knives, adornments, charms, and weapons are all attached to the belt. For this reason, belts are not made cheaply. They are crafted of good, thick skin, reinforced with metal rivets or fasteners, and fitted with sturdy buckles. It is an unbearable humiliation for a Slavard to have his belt taken from him.
Slavard women wear full-length dresses, fastened at the neck with bone or amber buckles. Over top, they wear tunics made of two rectangular lengths of fabric joint at the shoulders by leather buckles (for poorer women) or brooches (for richer women). Women who work around the home wear, in addition to belts, chains fastened to their clothing by buckles or brooches. These chains are fitted with small bark boxes for holding needles, knives, keys, and other small items.
The farther south a Slavard lives, the more his wealth and social status will be reflected by the way he dresses. Rich and famous Slavards from Imperial cities often wear silk and cloth brocaded with gold or silver thread, two-colored cloth jackets similarly brocaded, and cloaks embroidered with exquisite needlework. But Slavards from the North primarily view such countrymen with contempt, men and women "dressed up like girls going to the fair."
The northern priests of the Lei Sisters, called Leiwargs, wear two-toned black and white loose-fitting garments during their rituals. Both of these colors are used to symbolize death. White is the color of the Iceeyed's hair and eyes, and black is the color of her sister's cloak. The pagan, ancient beliefs of the Slavards center on death, and the Slavard priests are guides into its world – living servants, in a sense, of the Lei Sisters. Most pagan rituals include sacrifices, and once a sacrifice is complete, the priest generally dips his finger in the split blood of the victim and with it draws a scarlet sickle on his chest. Warriors setting off for a battle that will be especially hard – or that all know will be a fatal defeat – also wear the Sisters' scythes, painted on their foreheads and faces in blood.
What the people of other nations express with their dress, the Slavards express with tattoos. Tattoos are an indispensable part of every northerner's life. A Slavard's tattoos tell you what lineage he belongs to, what vows he has taken, how many victories he has won, what honors belong to his ancestors, and what honors belong to him. Or, to the contrary, a man's tattoos mark him as an oathbreaker, a traitor, a coward, or a deserter. Such people are branded with special tattoos (assuming the Jarl allows them to live, of course).
Each image depicted in tattoos has a specific meaning. For example, an ax is the mark of a professional warrior. A raven shows that its bearer has competed in the yearly contest of skalds, and the scythe of the Lei Sisters reveals that the warrior has vowed to perish on the field of battle. A gavran tattooed on the chest marks a man out for a sailor who lives by piracy. A gavran tattooed on the back identifies a sailor who lives by trade or fishing. Many Slavards, of course, will have ships displayed on both their chests and their backs. No Slavard would consider getting a tattoo for "beauty's sake." The tattooing process is quite painful, besides being sacred, and it is carried out under the guidance of a special priest, a "master of inks." But each Slavard's life is full of happenings and accomplishments, so by old age, many are covered with blue-green ink from head to toe. The more tattoos a man has, the more authority, wisdom, and experience he is considered to possess, and the more significant his opinion becomes to others, on any subject.
Battle amulets are forged in the shape of various weapons: Axes, hammers, shields, daggers, arrowheads, and spears – made of bone, stone, copper, and wood for ordinary warriors, and made of silver or gold for Jarls and their militiamen. Women often wear pendants depicting household items: Spoons, keys, and combs. The spoon is the symbol of family prosperity. The key indicates family stability, faithfulness, and devotion. Craftsmen prefer more practical amulets, depicting the anvil of Dost, a hammer, or a pail. Fishermen carry amulets shaped as Tolki's tentacle to ward off storms, or as fish to ensure a good catch. Hunters wear boar fangs. Northern pagans often use fragments of bone from their ancestors or defeated enemies (be they humans or dangerous beasts, like bears) as amulets. These include fingerbones, teeth, pieces of a jaw or rib bone, and so on. Those who worship the Sleeper, however, will generally only wear a single amulet of the Sacred Eye.
The Slavards live in long, low-roofed log cabins, with roofs covered in grass or sodden earth. Packed earthen floors, wooden benches for sitting and sleeping, glowing hearths, and sheep and goats sleeping under the roof with their owners during severe frosts – Slavard dwellings can hardly be called places of comfort. Their houses are heated with chimneyless stoves, to make matters worse. Slavards prefer to sleep outside whenever the weather permits. The braces of their doubly-sloped roofs are usually decorated with depictions of animal heads. The shutters on their windows are also covered with stylized carvings depicting waves or plants of the sea. A Slavard's yard is generally enclosed by a fence or palisade wall. Human skulls are often seen hanging over the gates, the skulls of the ancestors of those who now live here, elevated to protect the inhabitants from misfortune, frost, and evildoers.
Slavard weapons and armor
Slavard armament, too, is not known for being intricate or adorned. This people often wears a felted, leather, or quilted jacket lined with metal plates or ring mail, as well as high-top boots, riveted bracers, gauntlets, and an open bevelled helmet with nose guards. Chainmail pieces are rare in the North, normally only worn by Jarls and their militiamen. In the Empire, though, nearly every Slavard, whether he be a professional warrior, a trader, or a craftsman, keeps chainmail at home.
A Slavard's weapon is an indispensable companion. Every Slavard learns to use his weapon from a very young age, until it becomes second nature. There is no such thing as a Slavard unable to wield a weapon. Slavard women, too, are quite skilled with bows and "Ungersverden," literally "young swords," which are large Slavard knives. The most widely used types of weapons include: Axes and pole-axes, short swords (Frossnesangen), bows, short spears, daggers, and sometimes whaling harpoons. Swords are rare weapons in the North and are symbols of might and authority, wielded by Jarls and their militiamen. In the Imperial lands of the South, however, swords are not so revered and are often used by common people. The pagan Slavards also often wield slings, war hammers, and clubs enhanced with bone spikes, bone arrowheads, or even tips of stone. Slavard shields are round and wooden, with large metal bosses in their centers and bright decorations depicting their bearer's heraldic crest, or that of the Jarl.
Reception
A month after the release in November 2015, the game was awarded the "Best Indie RPG 2015" nomination by MMORPG.com during E3 2015. The reviewers noted that "Life is Feudal isn’t quite an MMO… yet. You can buy it and play the more limited survival RPG now, but when the MMO portion launches later this year, we expect more than a few sandbox MMO fans are going to find a lot to love in Life is Feudal. With fully customizable housing, PVP warfare, and a deep skill progression system LiF is one to watch, no doubt". The game itself has a score of 7.9 points out of ten based on 228 user reviews.[16]
Bleeding Cool praised the beta version of Life is Feudal: MMO in 8.5 points out of ten, calling the project "labor of love."[17]
GameStar characterized the game as a "extremely realistic simulator of the Middle Ages." At the same time, the interface of the game was criticized. It was noted that "to interact with each menu you need a lot more clicks than is really necessary."[18]
MMOHuts characterized the project as "very slow paced". It was stated that "The game does give you the idea that the world around you lives, yet portrays it very poorly and can be done so much better. Time isn’t on their side though."[19]
References
- ^ Codeman. "Life is Feudal - Life is Feudal: MMO". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ Llewellyn, Justin. "Xsolla Announces Partnership with Life is Feudal: MMO". Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ "Life is Feudal • View topic - Development News #53 - Guilds are Feudal!". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ "Life is Feudal • View topic - Development News #55 - 'New game features and mechanics are on the way!'". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ "Terraforming - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Monument - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Monument - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Alignment - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Alignment - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Life is Feudal • View topic - Development News #55 - 'New game features and mechanics are on the way!'". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Life is Feudal • View topic - Development News #56 - 'Progress on the Newbie Island Experience'". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Melee - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Skill Cap - Official Life is Feudal Wiki". lifeisfeudal.gamepedia.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "Life is Feudal - LoreStories". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ "Life is Feudal - LoreStories". lifeisfeudal.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
- ^ "MMORPG's Best of E3 2015 Awards - MMORPG.com". MMORPG.com. Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ Ricchiuto, Madeline (2017-05-01). "Life Is Feudal: MMO Is Very Clearly A Labor Of Love". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ "Life is Feudal: MMO - Beta-Ersteindruck: Wer Mittelalter will, muss leiden - GameStar" (in German). Retrieved 2017-07-21.
- ^ "Life is Feudal MMO Beta Impressions | MMOHuts". MMOHuts. 2017-03-20. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
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