World building in Chronicles of Elyria doesn't end with the launch of the game. The environment itself is fully-destructible, so players can see the results of their actions and make a lasting impact on the world around them. Be aware that the environment is also dynamic and will impact how you play. Explore the topics below to learn about the large-scale world of Elyria.
From housing and structures, to land management and agriculture, players are at the heart of settlements in Elyria. As a player, you can build-up and cultivate your tiny hamlet into a bustling hub of wealth and prosperity...or build up an army to siege and conquer instead. However, everything in Elyria is destructible and resources are finite, so the conqueror must be careful not to lose one's own home in the process.
Existing within a Settlement can provide many advantages to citizens. Basic survival needs such as thirst, hunger, and fatigue can be staved off. The safety of a town also means that there are enforceable laws, guards, civil servants, merchants, and other resources available. All of this means that there are things to do in order to keep the settlement running, which provides opportunities for scribes and alchemists, smithies and candle-makers, mercenaries and explorers, and everything in between.
Zoneless, destructible, evolving, and huge: this is the core of Elyria's living ecosystem. Plants and animals react naturally to their environment. An environment that players are in charge of! With more than twenty biomes to explore and create settlements in - from swamps to deserts to great forests - you can expect to watch Elyria grow and evolve around its citizens.
These differences not only provide breathtaking scenery, but economic opportunities through trade and delivery services, as well as societal and military advantages because of the unique terrain and tribal adaptations in each region. Elyria is huge at over 18,000 square kilometers. You could fit over 2,000 Skyrims in Elyria! It's not meant to be explored fully by every player but, instead, be cultivated and developed where your character lives. The land itself will provide natural gathering spots: estuaries, inland seas, mountain passes, where rivers converge, and more. That's where the largest civilizations will likely be. The rest are the wilds, full of natural resources, defensible territory, and mystery!
Tribes in Chronicles of Elyria take the place of what would normally be considered a "race" in other games, but provide much more! Tribes share a common set of physical characteristics, values, and beliefs that stem from adaptation to their environment. When you choose your tribe, you won’t just be choosing your appearance, it will also affect your family, body attributes, combat, language, culture, and more.
At the largest scale Elyria is broken up into continents which, in turn, are further broken down into independent, player-run Kingdoms. Each Kingdom is further broken down into Duchies, Counties, and individual Settlements which are player-run and managed. With so much control in players' hands, your choices truly matter not only to your game, but to that experienced by others across the server. The riches are real and adventurers can become the wealthiest and most powerful in the world - if they can survive the political intrigue.
Each character may live freely in Elyria, as long as the laws of the land are obeyed. Each Settlement, County, Duchy, and Kingdom will have its own laws set by its ruler. Many of these rulers will be real players! The Contract system is what allows these rulers to set player-enforceable laws on the citizens. While it's possible to break those laws, there are consequences that could result if caught. If you don't like the way your ruler is running things, there are several options from immigration to revolt. If those in power want to stay there, they shouldn't ignore what their subjects think of them!
In Chronicles of Elyria, what you see is what you get when it comes to inventories or items within the world. This means that anything you see a player or animal using will be found in their inventory. Because there are no spawn points for resources items remain in the world even when removed from your inventory. If you drop something in Elyria you'll see it on the ground. If you leave it there and walk away, it will be there when you get back...unless someone else comes and picks it up. Similarly items can be stolen, destroyed, lost, found, bought, sold, crafted, and recycled. Items in Elyria are crafted by its citizens, whether they be players or NPCs. Crafters will use tools in the world to create custom crafting recipes and patterns, or to research improvements to materials or techniques that can take existing recipes to new heights.
Within Elyria's unique environments you'll find a myriad of distinct creatures and plants which thrive in their own biomes. Many animals that are familiar will be present, but not all animals in Elyria are ones you might see on Earth. This biodiversity exists in a closed and finite ecosystem where there are no spawn points to camp or resource hubs to visit. Almost every animal can be tamed if you have the skill, but many are more likely to bite the hand that feeds them. Animals breed in the wild and in captivity using a complete genetic system to pass down traits. To maintain realism you won't see flying mounts or fast travel in Elyria. The goal of Chronicles of Elyria is to create a unique world filled with social interaction and biodiversity is an essential piece of that puzzle.
Chronicles of Elyria is different from most modern MMOs due to the involvement of players in all levels of government, so you won't find yourself playing in an already-written NPC world. At launch boundaries will be set with established Kingdoms, but these domains will trade hands as players clash over time. Leaders can be assassinated, coups plotted, and wars waged, all by players against other players. We want the world to feel like you're living in a low-fantasy adventure book, but what kind of a story would it be if the main characters died over and over again, with no apparent consequences? Not very believable. It would also make those main characters feel like they didn't have an impact on the world. If someone is special, their presence should be missed and their absence should be noticed, so expect when a main character is killed that they will disappear from the world.
Each server in Chronicles of Elyria will be distinct with a unique, procedurally generated world, complete with biomes, terrain, natural resources, and weather. Working with the community this extends to the very histories and lores established for each server. While many elements will be the same - animals, plants, and tribes for example - the continents themselves will be different.