Dark Grimoire FAQ

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Ben
Lead Worldbuilder
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Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2003 5:50 pm
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Dark Grimoire FAQ

Postby Ben » Mon Mar 22, 2004 10:48 pm

**please note - this was written in 2004. Some things may no longer be accurate. If in doubt, find a mentor in game or email me at [email protected]**
- Miranda


What the hell is this?!

DG is a massively multiplayer online roleplaying game in the stylings of such greats as Everquest and Asheron's Call, without all the annoying graphics. As such, you can play it at work, in internet cafes, at school, or on really old computers. All you need is the newest version of Mozilla Firefox or Microsoft Internet Explorer with cookies turned on, and your computer meets our minumum system requirements. Feel free to play on your 466mhz Pentium 1 with dialup.

Microsoft?! Firefox?! I use Netscape!!!

It would be impossible to test the game on EVERY browser, so we only test on Firefox, and sort of kind of test on IE. You are welcome to try to play the game on Netscape or another browser, but we only fix bugs as they occur in Firefox (and most on IE) to keep ourselves from spending all day every day fixing bugs instead of adding content.

Adding content? You mean this game isn't done?

That's right! This game is being made AS you play. When the game started in 2003, it was nothing but a town, a smallish prairie, and a few rooms of a sewer. It has grown considerably since then, and will grow even more in the future. Something new is added every day.

How do I get started playing?


If you are unsure of the strategy to start playing, you should look at your Informational Scrolls in your inventory. Those have all the info you need to get started. For an in-depth description, try going through the limited tutorial info where you start when you make a new character, OR check out Deek's Newbie Guide on the LINKS or HELP pages.

Links page?

Yes... we have a page dedicated to links to players' DG related sites. On the Links page, you will find guild pages, strategy sites, and fan fiction. Be sure to check out Deek's Newbie Guide if you are new, as well as The Map Vault if you want to not get lost.

Should I set my stats according to what profession I want to be?

You do not pick a profession (rogue, enchanter, warrior, cleric) until level 15. As an initiate, you may want to choose a balanced group of stats... maybe even 100/100/100/100. You will be able to learn all about stats and then make an informed decision on how to distribute them when you reach lvl 15. To learn more about the professions, use the link on the HELP page. If you do not at least somewhat balanced stats, you may find yourself too stupid to fight effectively, or too clumsy to use your massive strength, etc.

I am approaching level 10... why is it taking me so long to level now?

There are a few reasons. First of all, this game is designed to attract a type of player who wants to be here long-term. This is not a game you start playing, beat, and then stop playing. In fact, you really can't 'beat' The Dark Grimoire. A MMORPG world is designed to be a virtual place where your character lives. As such, progress is not as fast as you may be as used to in some other games.

The second reason is that the game is not done yet. So, if people were to level really fast, they would reach a point where they would be able to explore the entirety of the world after just a few weeks. Although some players complain that levelling is slow, players who reach the top of our current range complain that they levelled too fast and now have no game left to go through. Levelling is designed to hopefully be similar to the pace that the developers can make new content.

Anyways, a hardcore player who hunts a few hours every day, once they get to level 20, should probably not be levelling more than every few days... maybe even once a week as they get up to their high 20s. As the game nears completion, the XP levels will be tweaked to make levelling faster. For now, we are just trying to make sure that people do not reach level 42+ and then get bored because there is nothing left for them to hunt.

What are these ads? They are slowing me down!

We have ads sometimes to help offset the cost of running this game. The game is actually very expensive to maintain, because of all the bandwidth we use. Think about it... a normal website will have people going to a new page maybe once every few minutes as they read articles and click on new articles. In our game, as a person runs around, they are loading up to 30-40 new pages each minute! Thats a lot of bandwidth... so we need ad revenue to help us afford to keep the game alive.

Don't you guys make money doing this or something?

Actually, no. The ad revenue and the premium subscriptions all go towards keeping the server up and running, as well as for purchasing advertising of our own. The two of us running this game (Cory and Ben) have never seen a profit. We are not even really trying for a profit right now. All money is for making the game (and maybe some of our new games we are planning) better. Someday, when we have more time, we plan on trying to make money... but right now we are just having fun, like the players.

So how do you eat? Where do you sleep?

This is actually mostly a hobby for us. We work on the game "in our spare time". Cory has a very busy job and a family to take care of, and I (Ben) am currently in grad school. Because of this, the game has more of a relaxed feel than you might be used to in some more commercial products. So, if we don't act professional all the time... that is why. We are here just to have fun, too... and to share that fun with you! Premium memberships keep the boat afloat.

Premium membership? How much is it, and what exactly are the rewards?

Well, first of all you will get rid of the ads. This not only makes the game look better, but IT SPEEDS UP INCREDIBLY. Our own server is very very fast, but because the game needs to load the ads up along with our own content, the game actually runs only as fast as the ad company's server... which is definately slower than ours. When you go premium, you only load our faster content. It is quite a difference.

Premiums also get many cool and fun things in-game. You get to make a description of your character that is displayed on your inventory when people examine you. You get special abilities when you pick certain professions... such as unlimited teleporting if you are an enchanter. (Teleporting costs money every time if you are not premium.)

Premium members get a FRIENDS LIST. It allows you to see who is online, how long ago they were last active, and makes it really easy to send people messages.

Premiums also get: an extra life per hour, an extra character slot to make more characters, and more bank slots so you can store lots of things. More features are bound to follow. Premium currently costs a paltry five dollars a month to subscribe for all these great features, payable thru PAYPAL as a monthly subscription. If you do not have a full paypal account, you can use a credit card to pay for a few months at a time, although the price will be slightly more.

What are the professions?

There is a list of current professions and their abilities in the GAME UPDATES forum... it is one of the threads stuck near the top.

What do these stats... STR, CON, DEX, INT... do?

Check that Informational Scroll for New Adventurers... there is a lengthy description.

Why can't I equip this item?

Maybe you are not a high enough level yet... check the level requirement. The other possibility is that you already have something equipped in that slot. If you are holding a sword already, you cannot hold an axe.

This cleric will not heal me to full strength!

NPC clerics can only heal you to your natural strength... so if you have any items that give you extra CON and thus extra HP, you will have to heal that extra HP with potions or a player cleric friend.

I went to go kill a boss monster, but it wasn't there... and it would not appear no matter how many times I walked into the room! What gives?

Boss monsters and some other special critters that drop special loot work differently than normal monsters. They spawn once every few hours (the number of hours is different for each boss... some are every hour, some are once every five hours, or something else). If a boss monster is gone, then somebody probably recently killed it. Just try back again after the next hour, and maybe a new one will be there. WARNING: if you log off in a boss monster place and just log back in every hour to check, the monster will never be there. Monsters refuse to spawn if somebody is camping their spawn spot. So you can't leave your character just sitting in a boss's lair and expect him to show up someday. =)

I fought this monster yesterday, and he was stronger/weaker/gave more money/gave more XP/etc! What's up with that?

As the game is in development, changes are made constantly to monsters and items in the game. If something changes, do not be surprised. Usually if something major changes, like I raise the overall level of a dungeon up or down, I will post in GAME UPDATES. For little changes, I do not usually post, because we make two or three a day!

I want a title! How can I get one?

Titles are given for a few things. First, you could get on the top 10 stature list on the homepage. Second, you could complete an admin run quest and earn one... although I should say that not every quest results in a title. Third, premium members are noted as being "nobles."

I'm tired of the sewer. When can I leave?

Contrary to popular belief, the plains and some areas of the swamp and great tree are JUST AS EASY as the lower level of the sewers. Actually, the plains are slightly easier than the lower level of the sewers. It always surprises me to see level 4 and 5 people hunting in the lower level of the sewer when the rewards are much greater out in the plains and swamp. Maybe new players just love the sewer? Smells great!

For some hints on what to hunt, try the Informational Scroll for New Hunters, sold at the Inn. It has a list of lower level monsters and what level they are.

I don't know what to do! I am lost/confused/weirded out!

Talk to your fellow adventurers. Check your mentors list... find somebody who has moved in the last 2 or 3 minutes, message them, and ask your question. Anybody who signed up to be a mentor WANTS to be asked questions. They would not have put themselves on that list if they didn't want to help you.

Why do I keep missing for lack of skill?

You probably did not put enough points in intelligence. Unlike D&D, here in the DG system, intelligence is important for ALL professions, even violent warriors. Without intelligence, a warrior will not be able to put his brute strength into play... the warrior will miss when he swings and fail to dodge or block with his shield, because he lacks the intelligence to have good battle strategy. Be aware that EVERYBODY, no matter how high their intelligence, will miss due to lack of skill occasionally... nobody is perfect. But if it is happening every battle, then you probably need to improve your intelligence.

Help! I am bleeding!

Visit the town cleric. Being healed by the cleric also stops any bleeding. Bleeding happens randomly when you are struck by monsters... do not worry, as you cannot die from bleeding.

Where do I get <item name>? I saw this one guy my level carrying it and it looked really cool!

Why don't you ask that player? Communicate with your fellow adventurers in game... I am sure you will find most are very helpful people.

How do I level up? I have 133% of the XP I need, and yet I am still the same level.

You must visit a town trainer to level. They are in most cities or towns.

Is there a way to team up to fight monsters?

If two adventurers are in the same area, they can each take turns whacking at a creature. People who cooperate to kill a monster will split the XP based on the amount of damage they individually were responsible for.

Is there PVP? I am itching to wipe the smirk off of my friend's face!

No, sorry... no PVP yet, although we hope to have that someday. We are focusing on the story and player vs monster experience first and foremost.

When will <insert feature here> be done? Why aren't there more <insert feature here> in the game?

Both Cory and I are very very busy people. I am in grad school, and Cory has a very demanding job and a family. Building this game is our hobby.... a hobby we are more than happy to share with you. However, the game gets new features and areas added when we have spare time. As this game gets us no money (all premium fees just cover maintanence and a bit of advertising) we both have other lives to take care of first. So, it is no use really asking when things will be done. We don't know. If we find we have an hour off during a day or something, we will add a new feature in. If we are busy for a week, you might not even see us at all.[/b]
Ben
Grimoire Entertainment Inc.
Click HERE to contact Ben or another Admin. Actually, don't contact Ben, he's somewhat pretty much retired.
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