Wiki info: New Player Guild

[Eldaquen]

Realm Storyline
The realm of Aetheria is in a state of all-out war - the dimensional walls between planes are crumbling, sending creatures of all types - powerful and weak, good and evil - swarming through the cracks at an alarming rate. These creatures have begun to completely take over the land, and the once peaceful and widespread people of Aetheria have been driven back into a small corner of the world that was once theirs.

Hundreds of years have passed since the swarms began, and the once wild and reckless creatures, pulled from their home planes and forced to fend for themselves in a strange land, have begun to form civilizations of their own, usurping the lands that once belonged to the citizens of Aetheria. To survive, they were forced to band together, and seven factions have since emerged:

The Last Alliance
Shadow Legion
Ragnar's Kin
Northern Coalition
Mystral Ascendancy
The Circle
Ancient Ones

Their ultimate goal - to eliminate the other powers and take the realm of Aetheria for themselves, once and for all.

As a player, you arrive in Aetheria through one such dimensional rift, having been pulled from your home plane and tossed into a world you know nothing about. You are met at the opening of this rift by seven Ambassadors, sent by their faction leaders in a desperate attempt to gain the upper hand, recruiting people and monsters that stream through at an ever-inreasing rate. The forces battling for control of Aetheria are not the only dangers you will face, due to the unstable nature of the plane, traveling through the realm affords many opportunities to venture into other planes, more distant, but also more dangerous.

New Player guild:
Contents
1 World of Aetheria
2 Factions
3 Merchants
4 Summons
5 Spells
6 Subraces
7 Lag



World of Aetheria
Aetheria is a world at war. The world is seperated into Seven Factions, many of which have multiple restrictions on what you can build there. It is important to understand these restrictions if you wish to play a certain faction.

Factions
Shadow Legion - Deep in the underdark, the Shadow Legion, calling Menzoduran its home, breeds a manifestation of evil. Fittingly, it is the exclusive home of the Assassin. While this faction does allow a wide variety of Races and Classes, those races that are not Drow must be evil-aligned and may not be good. Given this evil nature, the faction also does not allow Paladins. Also, Druids and Rangers are not allowed. Clerics in Menzoduran may not take the Air Domain, Fire Domain, Good Domain, Plant Domain, or Sun Domain.
Mystral Ascendancy - Isolated on the southwestern coast of Aetheria is the town of Garagoth, home of the arcane and a host of Roguish types. This faction is one of the most limited in terms of Classes. While accepting any non-good Races (meaning Aasamir are not allowed in particular), the only accepted Classes are Wizards, Sorcerers, Bards, Rogues, Fighters, and Clerics (with limited Domains). Clerics in Garagoth may only take the Magic Domain, Travel Domain, Trickery Domain, Death Domain, Evil Domain, Knowledge Domain, or War Domain. The Mystral Ascendancy is also the exclusive home to the Pale Master, one of the most powerful summoners in the region.
Ragnar's Kin - With wide carved halls and an underground Stronghold rivaling surface kingdoms, the loyal Dwarves of Aetheria call the underside of the Redhorn Mountains their home. Not wanting to shun any of their kinfolk, they are quite open about Class selection (except Arcane Archer, but do not accept any of the surface races into their ranks. Gnomes, being an underground cousin to the Dwarves are accepted with open arms. This faction is the exclusive home to the Dwarven Defender. Clerics in Ragnar's Kin may not take the Air Domain, Plant Domain, or Sun Domain.
Ancient Ones - Ruled by the powerful Dragons, this faction is located in the northeastern corner of Aetheria. Though Dragonkin and lizardfolk are most noted for their hatred of other Races, they are more than willing to accept slaves and followers to support their cause. Along with openly accepting any alignment, and Class, except Paladins, Wizards, or Shadowdancers, they are also home to the powerful Red Dragon Disciple The dragons have decreed that in support of their alliance with the dwarves, they will no longer accept slaves of the Dwarves or Gnomes races. Clerics in Sleeth may not take the Earth Domain, Plant Domain, Trickery Domain, or Water Domain.
Northern Coalition - Located in the notherwestern corner of Aetheria in the city of Daeron hosts the home of those who fight for all that is good in this world. A collection of Clerics, Bards, Paladins, and Monks make up the majority of this group, while also accepting Rangers and Fighters of good heart to join their righteous battle against evil. While accepting all non-Evil Races, any who wish to join must be of good or lawful alignment and cannot be chaotic or evil in any way. This is the home of the Champion of Torm and the Purple Dragon Knight. Clerics in Daeron may not take the Evil Domain.
The Circle - In the midst of the serenity of the enchanted forest here in Aetheria lies the home of those who wish to preserve that which is around them, Melencia. While accepting all Races into their humble home, they only allow Druids, Rangers, Barbarians, Bards, Fighters, Monks and Clerics (with limited domains). Clerics in Melencia may only take Travel Domain, Plant Domain, Animal Domain, Air Domain, Fire Domain, Earth Domain, Water Domain, Healing Domain, Protection Domain, Sun Domain, or Destruction Domain. The Alignments are restricted to Lawful Neutral, Neutral Good, True Neutral, Chaotic Neutral, Chaotic Good. They are home to the Shifter.
Last Alliance - Long has the battle in Aetheria run. Long have the peoples of Neversummer held fast against the invaders of the rift. Long has the war taken its toll upon the original citizens of the Alliance. No longer....no longer will the people of Aetheria abide by these tragedies. No longer will the citizens of Neversummer allow raiders from the rift into their city. No longer will the peoples be complacent or oblivious as to what their leaders are doing. The stage has been set. Neversummer has refused to participate any further in the recruiting of tainted people from beyond. The city is teeming with activity, a new leader has been found. A new hope to bring the last of the original inhabitants back into power. A new power is being tapped to make Neversummer greater than the other factions that fight over scraps of land. This war is now about one thing and one thing only. The removal of all outsiders from their land, an end to the wars. A strong and powerful Neversummer shall now rule the lands. Located on the south coast of Aetheria, this is where the native people in this realm reside. The Last Alliance no longer accepts outsiders.
One other city of note in Aetheria is the City of Trade, Avendell. It is neutral to all Factions and is a sanctuary to the war outside its gates. (NO fighting in Avendell or the immediate area around it). Avendell is closest to Neversummer City, the capitol of the Last Alliance, being not too far north of it. Inside of Avendell shops of all kinds can be found, along with The Hilltop Inn, and its own graveyard.

Alliances have been formed between many of these factions. Such alliances include that of the Shadow Legion and Mystral Ascendancy, Northern Coalition and The Circle, Ragnar's Kin and Ancient Ones.

Merchants
Each faction city has a merchant that sells inexpensive items especially for starting characters. In most cities, these merchants are in the same location as where the character starts. These merchants offer items from a menu of selections.

The merchant system in NS4 is custom designed to be more like an actual store. There are store hours for faction city shops, they are only open from 6am to 8pm [6-20] (Read the time by hovering your mouse over the compass in the bottom right of the screen). Shops in Avendell, Frostdale and the Illithid Shop are open at all hours. Equipment has level restrictions of 1,5,9,13,16,20,25, and 30. Merchants in Faction Cities carry level 1-9 gear while Avendell has level 13 gear as well. The rest of the gear must be found from mobs and bosses located around Aetheria, and the Planes beyond.

To use the merchant shops, you must select the equipment you want from the chests in the store, then take it to the merchant for purchasing. It is highly recomended that you try items before you buy if you are unsure if you can use them. If you are not high enough level for that item you will be told so in the combat dialog box. Along with buying items, merchants will also allow you to sell and Identify your goods for you. Please note that some stores are unable to buy some items. This includes Quest-Items and Category: Items too high up for some stores. For example, you may not sell diamonds or rubies to merchants in Faction Cities.

Summons
The summons in NS4 have been completely revamped. Spell Focus Feats and Cleric Category: Domains all affect the strength of your summons. Summon creature spells are affected by good/neutral/evil alignment in that they will summon different creatures. Prestige classes like the Pale Master and Blackguard have quite powerful custom summons, but require much dedication. For more see the Summon Guide

It also should be noted that Familiars and Ranger Companions are disabled.

Spells
Many Spells have been altered in Neversummer 4 and are in constant change. The Wiki may not be 100% to all the changes happening, and a spell guide will be created when the dust starts to settle. Review the Spell Changes list and the NS4 Change Log on the Forums (http://www.nsrealm.com), for current changes.

Subraces
Use care when selecting Subraces in NS4. Many have powerful features that set them above the stock races, but may carry unwanted side-effects. One such side-effect is ECL or effective character level. In a nutshell, ECL races recieve less xp.

The bonuses given to subraces are hard coded bonuses, meaning they are natural and are seen by the engine for purposes such as Feat selection or Spells Level. Also, if a Subrace has a negative or bonus to Intelligence, it will affect the number of Skill Points a character receives at Level-Up.

[Lag
As with almost any online game, lag is an inevitable issue, especially with the popularity of the server. During times of lag NPC conversation may be slow, or be halted altogether. If you get no response at all, ask nicely for a reset on the DM channel or shout (a DM may be on as a player). When the server does go down for a reset, the DM will usually give enough warning for you to get to a safe spot, rest, and use your book to save your character.

Under some circumstances, the server has been known to crash, causing a possible loss of xp, items, etc. Using your book and resting normally do save your character, but if the server crashes it seems to roll back to an earlier point of the database, causing the loss of up to a couple of hours' worth of data. Logging off and then back on will prevent this loss--logging off seems to set your data in the database so that it does not get lost in a crash.

[Eldaquen]

Category:Factions
From Neversummer 4 Wiki
Faction Overview

The Neversummer faction system is one of the most unique features of the module. While superficially based on the internal faction system of NWN, NS4 takes the concept of individual and group reputations to a new level. With seven distinct player factions to choose from and over 30 creature factions to add flavor and dynamics, NS4 dispenses with the simplistic idea of "good vs. evil" and "player vs. creature", and offers the chance to fight along side some of the most fearsome and powerful forces in D&D.

It is important to distinguish the factional system of reputation tracking with the individual factions themselves - while they are closely related, there are certain distinctions between the two, and it is easier to think of them as follows: The factional system consists of the various reputations, or hostility ratings, that every player and faction possess. Factions can be thought of as groups of creatures that share the same factional reputations, at least initially. As the game evolves, certain NPCs and PCs that were once hostile may become friendly, or vice-versa. You may have the same hostility ratings as members of a certain faction - but that does not automatically make you a member of that faction.

Unlike the traditional NWN faction system, individual members of factions (NPCs and PCs alike) can have divergent beliefs about other creatures and players. This can make for an interesting dynamic in certain situations, and can lead to conflicts of loyalty and "lesser of two evil" situations. Generally, however, factions tend to stick together when it comes to hostility and reputations: When a player commits certain acts (such as attacking or killing an NPC), word will spread quickly and the player will soon become an outcast in his own faction - forced to flee and fend for himself in the world.


Hostility Ratings

There are five basic hostility ratings in NS4. In general, the middle three are the most common, and it is much easier to go down on the hostility ladder than it is to climb back up. It should be noted that attacking, casting a hostile spell, taunting, pickpocketing, or any other hostile act will immediately trigger the target to view you as "Hostile", however this is only an initial reaction which will fade in time. If you persist and continue acting in a hostile manner, this temporary rating may become permanent, and the target will most likely spread the word to the other faction members that a traitor is in their midst.




Honored - Reserved for those that achieve the highest level of respect and admiration from a given individual. Those NPCs that view you as "honored" will not only defend you from enemies, but they will join you in attacking any creature that you threaten - friend or foe.
Protected - The default level of treatment for new members of a faction. As the term implies, any protected members that are threatened by a neutral creature or an enemy will receive the aid of nearby NPCs. The factions are very protective of their members, and retreating or "leading" hostiles back to your powerful friends can be an effective tactic.
Neutral - Those creatures that perceive you neutrally are simply indifferent toward you. They will neither help you nor hinder you in your progress, and will offer the same support to both you and your enemies. Avendell and other unaligned factional areas strive to maintain neutrality as a while, although many individuals within those groups may stray one way or another.
Hostile - The default level of treatment for faction enemies. Hostile creatures will engage you as soon as you are within a certain range of them. In certain cases, they may retreat or fall back to friendly creatures for support if the battle becomes too tough.
Despised - The worst possible rating you can have with an individual. Creatures that despise you will target you over all other potential targets available, and will not stop until one of you is dead. Some factions automatically have this kind of disposition towards others: Members of Shadow Legion and Ragnar's Kin despise each other, as do Circle and Mystral Ascendancy members.

Remember, since nobody ever really dies in Aetheria (see Binding and Respawning), taking a secret "to the grave" is impossible, and "burying the hatchet" is virtually unheard of. Anything you do to anyone is most likely going to be passed around and remembered for years to come, so make sure your actions are well-thought-out! Currently, only divine intervention or soon-to-be-implemented geas/quests may save you if you are driven out of your faction.

Be nice to your faction or end up an outcast.


Choosing a Faction

Faction selection takes place after initial character creation. While players will have the opportunity to talk with factional "Ambassadors" before making their decision, their perspectives are undoubtedly biased and a wise player would take the chance to read the more objective descriptions given in the faction forums. Faction selection is quite possibly the most important choice your character will face, and it will determine the course of their adventures from that point on.

Players of opposing factions will initially appear hostile to one another. While you will not know which faction another creature or player belongs to unless specifically told, they will glow red to show that your faction consideres them to be an enemy. Other creatures and players will glow blue, showing you that they are non-hostile. Players are free to override this setting and "diverge" from the standard faction's view of another creature or player - keep in mind, however, it makes little difference how you view someone else - far more crucial to your safety is how they view you!

Cancelling the hostility you have toward another player is accomplished via the "Player List". Simply click the current Like/Dislike setting to change it, and the other player will be notified of your act. Forming a party will automatically cancel your hostility and enable you to work together in the realm - however your respective factions will still view you as seperate entities. They may begin to attack your companion, thinking they are "protecting" you, and you risk losing status within your faction if you fight back. Also, players who override hostility in this way should take care when logging in and out - returning to the realm will reset your PvP hostility back to the default!