Free accounts

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On 3/10/2015 (5 Moliko 415), a free option became available to players creating new accounts.

Currently, there is no option for subscribers to downgrade their accounts to free accounts.

Impact on Trial Accounts

Trial accounts were automatically converted to free accounts.

Role-playing Considerations

The IC term for a character on a free account is "explorer."

Differences Between Free Accounts and Standard Accounts

Free accounts operate under several different mechanics, some of which can be upgraded with SimuCoin purchases. See below for a list of such upgrades.

Travel

  • Free players will primarily populate Zoluren. Passports exist for each of the other four provinces. These passports can be obtained from the SimuCoin store.
  • If your passport expires while in another province, you can remain there. However, if you leave the province (return to Zoluren, or use another passport to go elsewhere), you won't be allowed back without a new passport.
  • A caveat to the above: some spells, abilities or items may not function even within the same province if your passport has expired.
  • For example, within the province of Qi'Reshalia; you cannot utilize moongates to access other islands within the province once your passport expires.
  • Tricky candy teleporters from Hollow Eve will only zap free players to or around Zoluren.
  • The Riverhaven ferries require a passport for Therengia to board. Likewise, you can't dive into the river without a passport. Those hidden protectors are rather insistent.
  • The barges from Ilaya Taipa to Ain Ghazal require a Forfedhdar passport.
  • The gondola to Shard requires a passport for Ilithi to board.
  • The sea mammoths to Fang Cove require an active Ilithi passport.
  • The Gear Gate of Raven's Point and the dark hole that leads to Cragstone Vale, the Black Spire, and more bar further access to Forfedhdar without a passport.
  • Route ships require a passport to the destination province, unless it's same-province travel (for example, Night Sky, Jolas, and Halasa Selhin). You can always disembark from these ships, even if your passport expires en route.
  • Ranger trails cannot be used without a valid passport for their destinations.
  • The balloon from Langenfirth to M'Riss requires a passport for Qi'Reshalia.

Temporary Visas

Free players who have certain guild quests outside of Zoluren can get a temporary visa to access the province they need. Currently this system works for:

Clerics - Infusion, Resurrection, Murrula's Flames, and Truffenyi's commune
Moon Mages - Starlight Sphere, Shadewatch Mirror, Invocation of the Spheres, 100th circle ability quest.
Note: For the Stellar spells you need to meet all prerequisites for the spell and have asked a Guildleader about the spell within the last 24 rl hours. The visa for the 100th circle quest should be available as soon as you need it.
Note: The astral travel quest cannot be completed by players with free accounts. This also means that the 100th circle ability cannot be used (as it requires advanced knowledge of the Astral Plane), although the 100th circle ability quest must be accomplished to level to 100th circle.
Note: The enchanting examination can be undertaken by players with free accounts, but free temporary visas are not granted. A Therengian passport must be purchased from the SimuCoin Store. (or you can take the exam while using the visas for the above spells)
Paladins - Glyph of Warding, Glyph of Light, and Glyph of Mana
Thieves - Signs, Ambushes
Warrior Mages - The Pathway Quests that require you to travel to Throne City (These are currently the ONLY pathway quests awarding a visa. For all other extraprovincial pathway quests, ask for a new one every 2 hours until you get one in Zoluren.)

Free players can visit the Citizenship Office in the Town Hall in Crossing and ASK CLERK ABOUT VISA/TRAVEL, the clerk will let you know whether you qualify for a temporary travel visa and how much gold it will cost. The visa will always be for the earliest guild ability you are missing, so unless you happen to want to go to the same province as the earliest one you are missing, then you will need to finish your previous ability quests before working on newer ones.

Once you confirm that you'd like the visa and pay the clerk, you can access that province for 24 hours. You will see dire warnings not to overstay your visa. If your visa expires and you are still in an area that you don't normally have access to, you will be hunted down, tied up, beaten, mugged, fined, and spoken down to by an underpaid civil servant. You will also have a much longer period of time to wait before receiving a new visa for some new ability that you may need to get later. If you return on time, or at the very least, before the bounty hunters find you, then you can apply for another visa sooner. Returning does not require going back to the Citizenship office. You merely need to be somewhere in Zoluren (or any province you have a passport for) or upgrade to a subscription.

You can only have one active visa at a time. If you conclude your business before the visa expires, you will have to continue to wait until it ends before getting a visa for another location. Assuming you haven't violated the terms of your last travel visa; temporary travel visas have a timer of roughly 2 real life weeks before you will qualify for travel visas for successive quests.

Inventory

  • Can wear one item in every slot except for body (10), over the shoulder (2), finger (2), and belt (2). A pass exists to unlock the additional slots that subscribers have.
  • Can carry a maximum of 100 (75) items normally. A pass unlocks bonus capacity to go up to 300 (250) items. Numbers in ()s denote when the junk room nags start (different messaging).
  • Many verbs were updated to respect these numbers -- GET, ACCEPT, FORAGE, ORDER, SKIN, SLIP and some others.

Experience

  • Early level experience gains are similar to subscribers, but it slows with moderate ranks. A pass can bonus it to subscriber-like levels regardless of current rank.
  • Log-in experience drain can be unlocked with a pass. Warnings will still affect this, whether a pass is active or not.

Loot

  • Free players still get loot, including the chance for special items. A pass will allow subscriber-like rates, amounts, and chances at scrolls. See: Free Account Boosters.
  • There is a (rare) chance, ONLY available to free players, to get a short-duration pass when LOOTing creatures. This is a way to experience upgrades from the SimuCoins Store without spending money. The loot system is not a reliable means of getting passes (and certainly not for getting any particular pass).
  • STUDY a pass or Free Account Boosters to examine the details. REDEEM or CLAIM pass to get access.

Communication, Customization and Expression

  • The SAY verb will allow you to manually specify emotes, but a pass is needed to unlock setting a default emote style.
  • All titles are available to review, but a pass is needed to CHOOSE a new one.
  • Item hiding mechanics do not function without a pass.
  • Merchant lists and spinners (for alterers) can be used by free players at the merchant's discretion.
  • Raffles require a pass in order to purchase a ticket. These passes function as charges instead of duration. Each raffle ticket you buy with in-game coins (only one per raffle allowed, as normal) will consume one of the pass's charges whether you win the raffle or not.
  • Free players cannot become a citizen of any province without a pass.
  • Most of PROFILE can be used, though a pass is needed to set a new IM, Quote, or URL.

Mule / Troublemaker Avoidance

  • Can listen to and learn from classes but cannot teach classes.
  • Teachers (subscribers) do not gain experience from free listeners UNLESS the only student is a free player.
  • Banks are limited to 10 platinum, total, whether you divide it among several banks or put it all into one. A pass can unlock the high bank balance limits enjoyed by subscribers.
  • No base storage (vault use), but expansions can be unlocked up to 250 items.
  • THUMP can be used on free players.

Staff and Player Assistance

  • A new ASSIST queue exists for free accounts.
  • GameMasters can easily identify REPORTs from free accounts.
  • CHATTER is enabled for all free players through 15th circle. This is an OOC, global channel to be used for getting help learning how to play -- the Mentors have access. Staff monitors for abuse and can block those who are disruptive.

Miscellaneous

  • Crossing is the only starting city allowed when creating a character.

Completely Blocked

"In addition to mule issues, wounds are a limited resource that are required for direct early Empath advancement and we do not wish to create an excessive demand. In addition to the "economic" issue, an Empath start is harder and more complex than virtually any other guild." --GM Armifer
"In addition to mule issues, some Trader systems are limited resources (shops, tables) and we don't want to create excessive demand." --GM Armifer
"A fairly obvious one. It's an advanced option that is utterly unsuited for a newbie, and we wish to keep the Necromancer population down." --GM Armifer
  • Teaching classes
  • Some teleporting items, spells, and systems. Many were updated to respect passports, but some just flat aren't available.
  • Moneybelts
  • Travel via player-owned ships
  • Gwethsmashers
  • Astral guides
  • Shadow Servants -- the spell can be learned but not cast. It can be unlearned via the existing spell forgetting mechanics.
  • Player-owned Caravan interiors
  • Rare metals from mining
  • ASSASSIN game / system
  • CONVERT for moving experience out of mech lore and into crafting skills. Some kind of pass could happen for this down the line, but it's not currently planned.

Upgrades for Free Accounts

The following is a list of the items for free accounts (filtered by "FREE TO PLAY") that are sold at the SimuCoins store as of 3/18/2015. (Unless otherwise noted, all of these items just grant access to the mechanics used by standard accounts.)

The "Dollar" column is the equivalent price in dollars using the median rate of 4,025 SimuCoins for $34.99.
Item Duration SimuCoins Dollars Description
Experience Absorption Booster 1 day 20 $0.17
Experience Absorption Booster 3 days 60 $0.52
Experience Absorption Booster 5 days 90 $0.78
Experience Absorption Booster 30 days 450 $3.91
Offline Experience Drain 30 days 300 $2.61
Offline Experience Drain 90 days 850 $7.39
Therengian Passport 30 days 200 $1.74
Therengian Passport 60 days 350 $3.04
Therengian Passport 90 days 500 $4.35
Ilithi Passport 30 days 200 $1.74
Ilithi Passport 60 days 350 $3.04
Ilithi Passport 90 days 500 $4.35
Qi Passport 30 days 200 $1.74
Qi Passport 60 days 350 $3.04
Qi Passport 90 days 500 $4.35
Forfedhdar Passport 30 days 200 $1.74
Forfedhdar Passport 60 days 350 $3.04
Forfedhdar Passport 90 days 500 $4.35
Inventory Slot Booster 30 days 250 $2.17 over the shoulder (+1), finger (+2), belt (+2), and generally worn (+20)
Inventory Slot Booster 60 days 475 $4.13 over the shoulder (+1), finger (+2), belt (+2), and generally worn (+20)
Inventory Slot Booster 90 days 700 $6.09 over the shoulder (+1), finger (+2), belt (+2), and generally worn (+20)
Item Hider Activation 30 days 75 $0.65 allows use of item hiders
Item Hider Activation 60 days 140 $1.22 allows use of item hiders
Item Hider Activation 90 days 200 $1.74 allows use of item hiders
Personal Inventory Upgrade 30 days 300 $2.61 carry up to 300 items
Personal Inventory Upgrade 60 days 575 $5.00 carry up to 300 items
Raffle Passes 5 raffles 25 $0.22 allows raffle play
Raffle Passes 10 raffles 50 $0.43 allows raffle play
Remove Bank Balance Cap 30 days 250 $2.17
Remove Bank Balance Cap 60 days 475 $4.13
Remove Bank Balance Cap 90 days 700 $6.09
Personality Profile 25 $0.22 unlocks IM and quote options in the profile editor
Speaker Pass 24 hours 25 $0.22 allows permanent emote for speech (lasts until changed)
Title Change Scroll 7 days 25 $0.22 allows title change (lasts until changed)
Writ of Citizenship 7 days 150 $1.30 become a citizen of a province (lasts until renounced)
Treasure Boost Token 1 day 15 $0.13
Treasure Boost Token 3 days 45 $0.39
Treasure Boost Token 5 days 75 $0.65
Treasure Boost Token 30 days 405 $3.52
Note: The treasure boost token only impacts the treasure drop rates, such as from creatures. This does not change the loot inside of treasure boxes. The contents of treasure boxes are the same random luck for both free to play and subscribed players.


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