Post by Gaia on Dec 14, 2013 3:51:22 GMT
THE BEGINNING
the story of Elder Tale, your story.
Elder Tale was the typical world phenomenon.
It was the first MMORPG to last two decades and still be going strong, fueled by the love of its hardcore players. It was a typical sword, board and spell MMO. The world, set in our own but in an old age with various races, breathed Adventure and gave players countless numbers of things to enjoy from combat to simple exploration. When it was released in the United States in 1998, the player base boomed and people flocked to the new game. With new servers and new expansions, the world expanded until eventually there were over a million players online. However the slowest to be released, the British Server, had the UK and several other countries outraged. In October 2018, they got their wish. The Unfounded Kingdom was announced to be opened with a new expansion and a whole new world was promised. Players prepared and on the day of release, the servers found themselves tested. Thousands signed on and the game kicked off with a bang. For the first few months, things went on without incident. But then, on February 14th or "Bloody Valentine's Day", it happened.
Midday when the servers were at their fullest, an event known in game as the Catastrophe happened.
As thousands of people signed in to play in the world of Elder Tale, the Servers across the world were attacked simultaneously by an unknown Hacker group. A figure who went by the name of "Hysteria" sent out a message across the internet, stating that the world beyond was a Holy Land and that the chosen few, "The Ascended", would be herded like sheep into the realm for judgment. He stated that the Gods would watch over their work and reward them for beginning the test of the heavens. At first it was believed to just be a way to scare people to not play Elder Tale, until it became real.
The world found itself locked in fear of the game and thousands of people vanished, all of whom had connected to Elder Tale. The servers were locked down and Elder Tale was considered the largest failure in the history of technology. In the confusion, several members of the Elder Tale team were arrested and put in jail for suspected kidnappings and murders of the players. These accusations were hard to stick, though, as players from all over the world had disappeared. Everyone who was sold a copy of Elder Tale and given a key found themselves out of their money and unable to participate in the new expansion. With their initial goal set into place and fear beginning to spread, the Hackers vanished.
Yet, this would not be the last sighting of Hysteria.
Two days after the initial disappearances, a website appeared with a list of names of all the people who had vanished as well as three countdown clocks, each on various points of a ten minute timer. Each moment a timer clicked to zero, a person's name was added to the list and they vanished from reality. The website was found to be connected to the video from Hysteria but was constantly moving through the Dark Web. When one site was brought down, another popped up with new names to the list. Eventually, the World Police stopped hunting the websites and instead watched it to see who's name would pop up next. Names that appeared were of people from all types of lives and there was no real connection between any of them. It seemed random, except for one small thing; every single person was found to have connected to the internet to play a game during the time they vanished. The World Police sent out an order to attempt to stop people from playing games but it was ignored. Even as games were banned, people continued to play and continued to find themselves sucked into the world of Elder Tale.
For those in the game world, this meant disaster. They were thrown into a completely new world and found themselves unable to leave the foreign land. For those in the Scandinavian Server, they found themselves stuck at Level 1 and were forced to start with nothing while players from other servers started from the levels they were transported at. The Adventurers were not the only ones afraid and confused. The People of the Land became living beings and entities, with fully developed personalities and existences. They stated that a bright flash and massive earthquake shook the regions and caused massive destruction on a global scale. Adventurers appeared in bright flashes, scattered across the main cities, and the People of the Land were frightened that it signaled the end of times. Very quickly, the Scandinavian Server collapsed into a world of barbarism. With no structure and fear, People of the Land found themselves attacked by Adventurers and visa versa. Player Reputations in small villages declined and Adventurers found themselves enemies of most NPCs. Not only did Adventurers and People of the Land fight, but Adventurers turned on their fellows as well. Player Killing and heinous actions exploded. With no law and no rules to follow, the land descended into a dark age of lawlessness. The Server found itself nicknamed "Red Island" and in the first few weeks, death was common at the hands of other Adventurers.
Soon, though, it began to set in that death would not allow freedom and those that caused a ruckus descended into madness. They were eventually chased away by city Guardians and a lull in the mayhem formed. Attacks became less likely and players got comfortable. With knowledge that they could not leave, Adventurers began setting their sights on survival.
And this is where your story begins. Will you allow yourself to descend into darkness, or will you battle adversity and triumph in the new world?
>> Part 1. THE UNFOUNDED KINGDOM
As the days filled with madness and chaos begin to die down, Adventurers steadily begin to build their new lives in the world of Elder Tale. Starting their adventures, hundreds of players set their sights on attempting to find a way out while others accept their fate and take their chances at living normally. Others plunge into darkness, unable to handle the pressure and burden of starting with nothing. Players are found all across the city either working or sitting in the shadows wasting away. Dozens flee the city, chased out by the Guardians due to their rash actions and become Bandits in the outskirts. The Nobles all leave in the beginning days after the Catastrophe and head south, disappearing from the land without a word to the Adventurers or the lower ranking citizens. They leave behind nothing but empty castles and manors. The ports are burned and any way off the British Isles is destroyed along with them. Adventurers and People of the Land find themselves trapped in the mass exodus of Nobles and without any form of leadership, they find themselves even more lost.
Yet, among it all, a darkness begins to grow beneath the surface of the Catastrophe. People of the Land and Adventurers alike disappear at random intervals and a heavy air lingers around the city of Londinium. Monsters begin to act unnaturally and become more aggressive in the wild and rumors of a Cult forming spread among the Landers. News of this Cult is hard to come by and information is scarce. But, the traces of their activity are already beginning to come to light.
