Post by IRiS on Mar 19, 2009 19:39:36 GMT -5
All you need to know about Runescape!
RuneScape is a Java-based Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game operated by Jagex Ltd. Recognised by Guiness World Records as the world's most popular free MMORPG,RuneScape has approximately fifteen million active free accounts and is a graphical browser-based game with a large degree of 3D rendering.
RuneScape was created by Andrew Gower, the creator of DeviousMUD, the forerunner to RuneScape, in 1998. Rewritten and renamed, the first version of RuneScape was released to the public on 4 January 2001 in beta form. It has a free-to-play option, and a simple interface that is accessible on most web browsers.
RuneScape takes place in the fantasy-themed realm of Gielinor, which is divided into several different kingdoms, regions, and cities.
Players can travel throughout Gielinor on foot, by using magical teleportation spells and devices, or mechanical means of transportation.
Each region offers different types of monsters, materials, and quests to challenge players. Unlike many other MMORPGs, there is no linear path that must be followed. Players appear on the screen as customisable avatars, setting their own goals and objectives. Players can combat both monsters and other players, complete quests, or increase their experience in any of the available skills.
Players interact with each other through trading, chatting, or playing combative or cooperative mini-games.
Skills
The 24 skills in RuneScape enable players to perform various activities within the game, allowing for interaction with NPCs, the environment and other players. Players gain experience points (exp) in a skill when they utilise it. For example, mining an ore trains the mining skill, and when the player accumulates enough experience points in the skill, their character will 'level up'. As the skill level rises, the ability to retrieve better raw materials and produce better products increases, as does the experience awarded if the player utilises the new abilities. The total skill level of a player partly symbolises the player's status in the game and the official RuneScape highscore tables can be viewed by anyone. Upon reaching the highest available level in a skill (99), members may buy a special cape known as a "Cape of Accomplishment" (or a "Skill Cape"), to symbolise their achievement.
Some skills, such as woodcutting and fishing, enable the player to collect raw materials that can be processed into usable items for other skills, such as fletching and cooking respectively. The items created can be used by the player or sold to other players in game for a profit. Other skills allow players to kill certain NPCs, build their own houses, move around the map with greater ease, steal from various NPCs and various stalls and chests located in-game, cook their own food, create their own potions, create runestones and weapons, grow their own plants, hunt NPC animals, and summon familiars to help in combat and training skills.
Combat
RuneScape features a real-time combat system. Combat is an important aspect of the game, allowing players to retrieve items or gold dropped by dead creatures. Combat is also necessary to complete many quests. A combat level gives an indication of how powerful a player or NPC is in combat. For players, it is determined by applying a formula to the eight combat skills. Players engage in combat by clicking on the enemy they wish to attack. A player will automatically continue fighting until they kill their opponent, die, or leave the fight by running away or teleporting. Most of the game's weapons are medieval or fantastical in nature and feature different strengths and weaknesses. Players may also summon a familiar to assist with combat.
Players engaging each other in combat in RuneScape Classic.Combat is subdivided into three main categories: melee, magic and ranged. Melee attacks are close range with or without weapons, magic attacks focus on using runestones to cast spells, and ranged attacks use projectile weapons like arrows, darts or knives. These combat types make up the "Combat Triangle". Melee attacks are most effective against ranged opponents, ranged attacks are most effective against magic opponents and magic attacks are most effective against melee opponents. Unlike most games in the MMORPG genre, RuneScape does not require players to choose a character class nor are players bound to a specific category of combat. They may freely change between the three styles of combat at any time by switching weapons and armour. Players can even carry the weapons and armour of more than one combat category in their inventories and switch between or combine the styles. The advantages and disadvantages of the combat triangle apply to both NPCs and player opponents.
Players die when their hitpoints are reduced to zero. Lost hitpoints can be recovered by eating food or drinking certain liquids. Players can use potions and the Prayer skill to boost their combat ability and defences. Players who die reappear at one of three respawn points (which members can toggle) with their hitpoints, and any other reduced skill levels restored; however, they drop all but their three most valuable items (the Prayer skill can be used to retain one more item). But there are situations in which all items will be lost upon death (or just one with the Prayer skill). The items dropped form a gravestone, and they can be retrieved if the player can return to the gravestone before it crumbles within a certain time limit. Players can purchase longer lasting gravestones, and fellow players can repair or bless a gravestone to make it last longer as well.
Player versus player combat (sometimes called "PvP Combat") can be performed in specific controlled mini games. Bounty Hunter gives players a chance to keep their opponent's items, Duel Arena offers limited staking, and some other PvP type games offer their own rewards (Fist of Guthix, Castle Wars, etc.)
Before 2008, Player Killers (PKers) were players that went to an area known as the Wilderness, to fight other players within a certain combat level range, hoping to gain their items. In RuneScape Classic, players could opt in to PvP in most areas outside of Lumbridge. Many player killers created "pures", which were min-max characters designed to have as low a combat level as possible by heavily training some combat skills and not training other skills to achieve a desired advantage in the combat triangle. However, in December 2007 the Wilderness was radically changed to prevent players from transferring in-game items for real-world currency. New creatures called Revenants were added to maintain adverse pressure on players in the Wilderness, and PvP was restricted to specific mini games and worlds, mentioned above and below respectively.
PvP Worlds
On 15 August 2008, Jagex announced their intention to introduce special worlds where players would be able to fight each other almost anywhere, in a similar way to RuneScape Classic, as mentioned above. To prevent players from using these worlds to transfer in-game items for real currency, Jagex stated that rewards for successful kills would be generated by the game based on difficulty and levels of danger. This update went live on 15 October 2008.
On PvP worlds, players can engage each other in combat almost anywhere in Gielinor, as long as their combat levels are within a certain range of each other. However, there are various "safe areas", in which players cannot fight each other. When one player attacks another, the attacking player is temporarily "skulled" (represented by a skull symbol hovering over the respective character's head). If a player dies whilst "skulled", they will lose all their items, unless they have used the Prayer skill to protect one item. Upon killing an opponent, the victorious player can claim an item as a reward. The reward given depends on, amongst other factors, the combat levels of the combatants, the value of items lost by the defeated player, and the value of the items the victum is carrying.
Quests
Quests are series of tasks with a storyline that players can choose to complete. Quests often have prerequisites including minimum levels in certain skills, combat levels, quest points and/or the completion of other quests. A few quests require players to work together. Quests are grouped into five categories based on requirements and difficulty. Novice quests act as extended tutorials for new players. Intermediate quests challenge players on a basic level, while experienced and master quests challenge the more experienced players and often open up new areas of Gielinor. Currently there is one Grandmaster quest, which features especially high requirements to challenge experienced players. Once a player completes all quests in the game, another achievement cape, commonly referred to as the "quest cape", can be purchased from an NPC. The cape comes with a special emote peculiar to the skill. Many quests require players to kill particularly powerful monsters. Generally, a new quest is released each month.
Players receive various rewards for completing a quest. Rewards depend on the quest's difficulty and include gold, unique items, access to new areas, increases in skill experience and/or quest points. Quests form the storyline of RuneScape, and many are part of a series of quests that become increasingly difficult. The longest and oldest (the first part of this storyline was released in 2002) of these is an incomplete seven-part series known as "Plague City". The storyline takes players through a massive conspiracy and unlocks areas inhabited by elves. Jagex has stated that it is the closest thing RuneScape has to a central storyline.
Random Events
Random events are short interludes that occur during the game, requiring some form of player input. They were introduced to deter players from using automated programs, known as macros, autoers, or bots. When a player receives a random event, they will be teleported to a secluded area, and must complete the event before they are allowed to leave. Players are rewarded for responding correctly to random events, but are teleported to a random location in Gielinor if they fail.
Jagex revealed on 27 March 2008 that it intended to reassess the random event system because "the threat of bots and macros has been largely removed." These plans were revealed on 2 February 2009, and enacted on 25 February 2009, with several random events being altered or removed from the game. The likelihood of a player receiving a random event, and the reward they would receive for a correct response, would be based on the player's total skill level, and their previous success in passing these events.
The Rules, Plus Cheating
Jagex has put in place a number of rules for player conduct, such as rules against offensive language, scamming, and bug abuse. To enforce the rules, RuneScape uses three types of moderators: Jagex moderators, who are actual Jagex employees; player moderators, who are trusted ordinary players that enforce the rules within the game; and forum moderators, who are trusted players who police the game forums. On the forums, Jagex moderators are identified by gold crowns and backgrounds on their posts while forum moderators have green crowns and backgrounds; in game, Jagex moderators have gold crowns next to their names in chat while player moderators have silver crowns. In addition, any player has the ability to report rule-breaking using a "report abuse" feature; misuse of this feature can result in action being taken against the reporter.
There are also rules prohibiting the use of third-party software to play the game, known as macroing, and the sale of game items for real money through real-world trading. In an attempt to stop cheating, Jagex made direct interaction with the client very difficult, and established rules against the practice. In response to continued gold farming—exploiting repetitive elements of a game's mechanics—Jagex issued a statement condemning real-world trading. In the statement, they also claimed that they were seizing billions of gold and banning thousands of accounts every week for cheating. Nevertheless, real-world trading and macroing activities still continued.
From October 2007 to December 2007, Jagex began a war on real-world trading by releasing a series of drastic updates to restrict unbalanced trades. These updates established the Grand Exchange, limited the value of items staked in duels, removed player killing from the Wilderness, made valuable player drops invisible to other players, introduced gravestones for the items of dead players, and instituted the LootShare, CoinShare, and player-assist systems. Collectively, these changes were designed to make it extremely difficult for real-world money sellers to distribute gold and items to players.
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That's all you pretty much need to know! If you have any question just post on this thread.
Good Luck!!!
RuneScape is a Java-based Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game operated by Jagex Ltd. Recognised by Guiness World Records as the world's most popular free MMORPG,RuneScape has approximately fifteen million active free accounts and is a graphical browser-based game with a large degree of 3D rendering.
RuneScape was created by Andrew Gower, the creator of DeviousMUD, the forerunner to RuneScape, in 1998. Rewritten and renamed, the first version of RuneScape was released to the public on 4 January 2001 in beta form. It has a free-to-play option, and a simple interface that is accessible on most web browsers.
RuneScape takes place in the fantasy-themed realm of Gielinor, which is divided into several different kingdoms, regions, and cities.
Players can travel throughout Gielinor on foot, by using magical teleportation spells and devices, or mechanical means of transportation.
Each region offers different types of monsters, materials, and quests to challenge players. Unlike many other MMORPGs, there is no linear path that must be followed. Players appear on the screen as customisable avatars, setting their own goals and objectives. Players can combat both monsters and other players, complete quests, or increase their experience in any of the available skills.
Players interact with each other through trading, chatting, or playing combative or cooperative mini-games.
Game Play Actions
Skills
The 24 skills in RuneScape enable players to perform various activities within the game, allowing for interaction with NPCs, the environment and other players. Players gain experience points (exp) in a skill when they utilise it. For example, mining an ore trains the mining skill, and when the player accumulates enough experience points in the skill, their character will 'level up'. As the skill level rises, the ability to retrieve better raw materials and produce better products increases, as does the experience awarded if the player utilises the new abilities. The total skill level of a player partly symbolises the player's status in the game and the official RuneScape highscore tables can be viewed by anyone. Upon reaching the highest available level in a skill (99), members may buy a special cape known as a "Cape of Accomplishment" (or a "Skill Cape"), to symbolise their achievement.
Some skills, such as woodcutting and fishing, enable the player to collect raw materials that can be processed into usable items for other skills, such as fletching and cooking respectively. The items created can be used by the player or sold to other players in game for a profit. Other skills allow players to kill certain NPCs, build their own houses, move around the map with greater ease, steal from various NPCs and various stalls and chests located in-game, cook their own food, create their own potions, create runestones and weapons, grow their own plants, hunt NPC animals, and summon familiars to help in combat and training skills.
Combat
RuneScape features a real-time combat system. Combat is an important aspect of the game, allowing players to retrieve items or gold dropped by dead creatures. Combat is also necessary to complete many quests. A combat level gives an indication of how powerful a player or NPC is in combat. For players, it is determined by applying a formula to the eight combat skills. Players engage in combat by clicking on the enemy they wish to attack. A player will automatically continue fighting until they kill their opponent, die, or leave the fight by running away or teleporting. Most of the game's weapons are medieval or fantastical in nature and feature different strengths and weaknesses. Players may also summon a familiar to assist with combat.
Players engaging each other in combat in RuneScape Classic.Combat is subdivided into three main categories: melee, magic and ranged. Melee attacks are close range with or without weapons, magic attacks focus on using runestones to cast spells, and ranged attacks use projectile weapons like arrows, darts or knives. These combat types make up the "Combat Triangle". Melee attacks are most effective against ranged opponents, ranged attacks are most effective against magic opponents and magic attacks are most effective against melee opponents. Unlike most games in the MMORPG genre, RuneScape does not require players to choose a character class nor are players bound to a specific category of combat. They may freely change between the three styles of combat at any time by switching weapons and armour. Players can even carry the weapons and armour of more than one combat category in their inventories and switch between or combine the styles. The advantages and disadvantages of the combat triangle apply to both NPCs and player opponents.
Players die when their hitpoints are reduced to zero. Lost hitpoints can be recovered by eating food or drinking certain liquids. Players can use potions and the Prayer skill to boost their combat ability and defences. Players who die reappear at one of three respawn points (which members can toggle) with their hitpoints, and any other reduced skill levels restored; however, they drop all but their three most valuable items (the Prayer skill can be used to retain one more item). But there are situations in which all items will be lost upon death (or just one with the Prayer skill). The items dropped form a gravestone, and they can be retrieved if the player can return to the gravestone before it crumbles within a certain time limit. Players can purchase longer lasting gravestones, and fellow players can repair or bless a gravestone to make it last longer as well.
Player versus player combat (sometimes called "PvP Combat") can be performed in specific controlled mini games. Bounty Hunter gives players a chance to keep their opponent's items, Duel Arena offers limited staking, and some other PvP type games offer their own rewards (Fist of Guthix, Castle Wars, etc.)
Before 2008, Player Killers (PKers) were players that went to an area known as the Wilderness, to fight other players within a certain combat level range, hoping to gain their items. In RuneScape Classic, players could opt in to PvP in most areas outside of Lumbridge. Many player killers created "pures", which were min-max characters designed to have as low a combat level as possible by heavily training some combat skills and not training other skills to achieve a desired advantage in the combat triangle. However, in December 2007 the Wilderness was radically changed to prevent players from transferring in-game items for real-world currency. New creatures called Revenants were added to maintain adverse pressure on players in the Wilderness, and PvP was restricted to specific mini games and worlds, mentioned above and below respectively.
PvP Worlds
On 15 August 2008, Jagex announced their intention to introduce special worlds where players would be able to fight each other almost anywhere, in a similar way to RuneScape Classic, as mentioned above. To prevent players from using these worlds to transfer in-game items for real currency, Jagex stated that rewards for successful kills would be generated by the game based on difficulty and levels of danger. This update went live on 15 October 2008.
On PvP worlds, players can engage each other in combat almost anywhere in Gielinor, as long as their combat levels are within a certain range of each other. However, there are various "safe areas", in which players cannot fight each other. When one player attacks another, the attacking player is temporarily "skulled" (represented by a skull symbol hovering over the respective character's head). If a player dies whilst "skulled", they will lose all their items, unless they have used the Prayer skill to protect one item. Upon killing an opponent, the victorious player can claim an item as a reward. The reward given depends on, amongst other factors, the combat levels of the combatants, the value of items lost by the defeated player, and the value of the items the victum is carrying.
Quests
Quests are series of tasks with a storyline that players can choose to complete. Quests often have prerequisites including minimum levels in certain skills, combat levels, quest points and/or the completion of other quests. A few quests require players to work together. Quests are grouped into five categories based on requirements and difficulty. Novice quests act as extended tutorials for new players. Intermediate quests challenge players on a basic level, while experienced and master quests challenge the more experienced players and often open up new areas of Gielinor. Currently there is one Grandmaster quest, which features especially high requirements to challenge experienced players. Once a player completes all quests in the game, another achievement cape, commonly referred to as the "quest cape", can be purchased from an NPC. The cape comes with a special emote peculiar to the skill. Many quests require players to kill particularly powerful monsters. Generally, a new quest is released each month.
Players receive various rewards for completing a quest. Rewards depend on the quest's difficulty and include gold, unique items, access to new areas, increases in skill experience and/or quest points. Quests form the storyline of RuneScape, and many are part of a series of quests that become increasingly difficult. The longest and oldest (the first part of this storyline was released in 2002) of these is an incomplete seven-part series known as "Plague City". The storyline takes players through a massive conspiracy and unlocks areas inhabited by elves. Jagex has stated that it is the closest thing RuneScape has to a central storyline.
Random Events
Random events are short interludes that occur during the game, requiring some form of player input. They were introduced to deter players from using automated programs, known as macros, autoers, or bots. When a player receives a random event, they will be teleported to a secluded area, and must complete the event before they are allowed to leave. Players are rewarded for responding correctly to random events, but are teleported to a random location in Gielinor if they fail.
Jagex revealed on 27 March 2008 that it intended to reassess the random event system because "the threat of bots and macros has been largely removed." These plans were revealed on 2 February 2009, and enacted on 25 February 2009, with several random events being altered or removed from the game. The likelihood of a player receiving a random event, and the reward they would receive for a correct response, would be based on the player's total skill level, and their previous success in passing these events.
Rules, Ect.
The Rules, Plus Cheating
Jagex has put in place a number of rules for player conduct, such as rules against offensive language, scamming, and bug abuse. To enforce the rules, RuneScape uses three types of moderators: Jagex moderators, who are actual Jagex employees; player moderators, who are trusted ordinary players that enforce the rules within the game; and forum moderators, who are trusted players who police the game forums. On the forums, Jagex moderators are identified by gold crowns and backgrounds on their posts while forum moderators have green crowns and backgrounds; in game, Jagex moderators have gold crowns next to their names in chat while player moderators have silver crowns. In addition, any player has the ability to report rule-breaking using a "report abuse" feature; misuse of this feature can result in action being taken against the reporter.
There are also rules prohibiting the use of third-party software to play the game, known as macroing, and the sale of game items for real money through real-world trading. In an attempt to stop cheating, Jagex made direct interaction with the client very difficult, and established rules against the practice. In response to continued gold farming—exploiting repetitive elements of a game's mechanics—Jagex issued a statement condemning real-world trading. In the statement, they also claimed that they were seizing billions of gold and banning thousands of accounts every week for cheating. Nevertheless, real-world trading and macroing activities still continued.
From October 2007 to December 2007, Jagex began a war on real-world trading by releasing a series of drastic updates to restrict unbalanced trades. These updates established the Grand Exchange, limited the value of items staked in duels, removed player killing from the Wilderness, made valuable player drops invisible to other players, introduced gravestones for the items of dead players, and instituted the LootShare, CoinShare, and player-assist systems. Collectively, these changes were designed to make it extremely difficult for real-world money sellers to distribute gold and items to players.
-----=-----=-----+-----=------=-----
That's all you pretty much need to know! If you have any question just post on this thread.
Good Luck!!!
-- IRiS
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