As a relative newbie in First Age I was wondering what the differences between the two worlds are in terms of gameplay; I know the Avalon Historical differences and have read Thorongil's post and answers.


My reason for asking is that there are many useful and valuable topics on these boards especially wrt herbs/poisons/macros/triggers etc and am not sure which ones apply across both worlds and which ones are world specific, are they marked in any way to differentiate?   

hmm, this question is probably too general to get a straight answer but I'll throw it open to the forum anyway   

Thanks,

Daedalus, Page of Mercinae


oh, and Hi!  Its good to meet you all    (this is my first post)

umm...no. there are quite a few more differences. in some ways, making the transition from FA to legends is quite rough, as superficially they appear the same, but several key things about them differ.

skills are more balanced out in legends. as much as we may say this guild is so much more overpowered, etc etc, in FA it is much more true. Legends has active coders continually introducing new skills to the realm. For example, each skillset just received several skills at varies levels of ability (Master and Ultimate +), and there is a rank of ability called Ultimate Plus, which gives special skills beyond Ultimate. These new skills, and revamping of old, ensures for a more dynamic land.

Commodities are rarely obtained through villages. There are 2 skillsets called labours and farming which are used to obtain and process commodities. They are not fully coded yet, so some things, such as leather and animals, still need to be purchased from village trade centers. This ability to manufacture your own materials leads to a much easier equipping process - silver, wood, glass, etc are not limited except by your own ability and patience. This also affects how fights go - sentinels (fist rune, loremaster skill) for example, or binding (tying someone up with rope, thief skill) are rarely used in FA, because of the rarity of the comms they require (silver and rope). In Legends these are common attacks. On the other hand, as animals/leather have become quite desired, pouches/packs/utility belts/mounts, etc are much more expensive.

Pacifism, as Artec mentioned, is a choice here for those who wish to not fight. It is not a complete avoidance of death, as there are still ways to die (brews, demons, that lovely mis-step off viewpoint), but it is a much safer existance for those who want to focus beyond combat. In addition, Divine Protection lasts for much longer in legends. It drops at the new year, which occurs every 15 days. Additionally, there are items/skills nonexistant in FA that allow for further protection, one such being the anchor rune, which acts as a curse for items - you cannot drop them, throw them, they can't be lost through trip, order give, and it limits outpouching to 1 herb/poison at a time.

Politics are much more elaborate. There are 5 barons per city, and a Prince/Princess that they swear fealty to, who is the overall leader of the city. In addition, there are ministries to help run the city, and each minister gets aides. eg the Ministry for Trade is responsible for collecting/sorting comms for the city - aides are called traders and deal with citizens to facilitate this.

More people play Legends - here is the crux. Legends has at least 10x as many people in its active player base. It is the primary source of revenue, hence the divine attention to skills, etc. In addition, that means more than one person can be paid to code changes/updates. FA is a fast, rough land focused on fighting - and there are benefits to a place like that. Legends is more focused on developing a character - there is always something to do, be it comm work, fighting, etc. 

More people means more competition. For a fighter, there are more people to fight - one common issue in FA is lack of opponents, meaning that one or two people get targetted, simply because they are the only opposition. But, in Lengends, there is also a higher competition for resources - herbs, poisons, etc. Prices on these are about 5-10 times more than the price in FA. Divinities are less accessable - as newbie in legends, having been used to (in FA) asking gods for flagquests when we were bored, or getting them to summon death for me so i could try stuff out, etc, i was a bit put off by the coldness of the gods.

There are many more differences (the key one being price, about 3x more, but there is a lifetime subscription offer), but player base size is one of the reasons for these divergences. Another is the goal of the players - FA was originally created by those who wanted to preserve the Avalon that existed before pacifism, labours/farming, etc were implemented - a land more focused on fast, intense combat. The adrenalin rush you get from fighting in FA is quite nice - repeated fighting, teams, quick thinking - but the finesse you see in the fighting in legends is also impressive.

Anyways, long rambling reply. Hope it helps.