1. Animals provide resources such as leather and food.
2. Animals provide decoration and 'sport'.
3. Some animals can be caught and tamed instead of killed.
4. Monsters are hunted for adventure and defense.
5. Hunting monsters is mandated by story elements and quests.
6. Hunting in general is a method of accumulating wealth.

1. Player housing would be 'conquerable' by others.
2. Player production requires access to locations in the towns.
3. Resource areas would be 'conquerable' by others.
4. The spoils of war is a quick way for financial gain.
5. Military and Militia service would have corresponding wages.

1. Item trade is basis for user interaction.
2. Economic gain for production and sale of items.
3. Items required in all other facets of gameplay.

1. Being the first to have something offers opportunity to exploit its value.
2. New items/concepts increase your utility and ability.

1. Users 'rate' each other on social skills, this rating is transferred to NPCs.
2. Social activity plays a large role in politics and religion.

1. All production is based on resources of varying states.
2. Refined resources are worth more than raw resources.
3. Resources can have value added by certain manipulations
4. All resources are found raw in nature. Some can also be found in other states of refinement.

1. Political/Religious standing is reflected in the behavior of NPCs.
2. Political office holds certain powers and abilities.
3. Titles and prestige are awarded for political success.
4. NPC deities grant favors to their disciples.

Players will go hunting for animals and monsters. This could be a full-time profession, or it could simply be a diversion or 'shopping trip.' The hunt will consist of locating and going to where a 'target creature' lives, getting into position, and then killing or capturing the animal. Animals are different from monsters. You have different reasons for hunting them, and you hunt them in different ways.

Animals as a group come in two styles: wild and domestic. Domestic animals aren't really hunted. They are found. Once found, you either harvest them, or claim them and take them home to be harvested later. These animals aren't scared of the players. In fact, they are quite ambivalent to the player, except when they are claimed. Then they follow simple directions, such as 'follow' or 'stay.' Wild animals are scared of the player. If the animal sees the player it will try to run away. It will run until it is trapped. Depending on the aggressiveness of the animal, it may then fight back, or simply cower. Hunting wild animals is accomplished in several ways. You can sneak up on the animal, trying to avoid detection until you can get a 'kill shot.' You can herd the animal into a dead end and fight with it, or kill/capture it while it cowers. Or, you can chase the animal trying to get in range for an attack. Depending on the situation, attacking a fleeing animal can have several results: the animal may turn and attack, the animal may stumble and fall allowing you to catch up, or the animal may continue running while damaged.

Monsters are either unnatural/mythical animals, or they are sentient but considered evil by your characters culture. These are mainly hunted for story, quest related reasons, or to claim whatever items/treasure they may have. A common story related reason would be defense of your community. The target creature is causing problems and must be eliminated. Quest related hunting trips could be test your resolve and ingenuity on a known challenge, or retrieve a stolen artifact. Finally, wealth concerns are easily understood. Some monsters are simply collectors of things powerful or 'shiny.' The common hunt for things considered to be monsters almost always ends up in a fight. You can try to sneak up on them, but as soon as your presence and intent is known, the monsters will attack you.

Players will own housing. Each housing plot has a certain 'area of influence.' Groups of neighboring houses can choose to form a town unit. This incorporates the influence from all the houses, and also expands it. Once this is done, the town becomes a sort of 'guild.' There is leadership, resource sharing, and communications options that open up. Incorporated towns also get added benefit from resource nodes that are in their area of influence. Players can construct utility buildings. They can be built on your own property, or as community property of the town you are in. In these buildings, certain aspects of advance gameplay take place, (such as worshipping, or item creation.) Some actions cannot be performed unless you have access to these utilities. It's important to defend your town or settlement from attackers.

Attackers consist of AI controlled opponents, or other players. The AI, as part of the mobs algorithm may sometimes attack settlements. This would be due to location, player faction, or just random luck. The worst case scenario from an AI attack is that you have to 'rebuild.' You will always retain ownership of that land. When Human opponents attack however, there are different consequences. Other players may attack for whatever reason compels them. Examples might be based on religious or political philosophies. It might be war, for whatever reason. Or, it could simply be an expansionist land grab, or an attempt to take over your resource control. Part of building a settlement is protecting yourself from all these possible attacks.

Once a settlement is formed, it can form a militia. Players, or even NPC's can join the army and serve as defenders or conquerers of settlements. The larger or more prosperous the settlement, the more structured the army is, and the higher the wages.

There are several tiers of 'items.' The lowest rung is resources. These aren't useful by themselves, but they are used solely as components in higher level items, fuel, or reagents for magic. These are mostly found or gathered, but some resources can be created by higher level processes.

The next level of item is a tool. These are produced and carried in your inventory. These are either trade tools, which allow, or facilitate the creation of other items, or they are tools for other occupations, such as weapons and armor. Tools wear with use, and occasionally need repair. Worn items become unusable, or inefficient. Repairs on tools use no resources, but may require the appropriate repair tool or equipment.

After tools we have equipment. These are large structures. They don't show up in your inventory, but are constructed on site. (Perhaps some pieces of equipment would fold up into a portable mode and have to be reassembled before you could use it.) Equipment behave as more advanced and permanent tools. They are used to create more advanced tools, or large, highly specific resources. (joists and a-frames for building construction, wheels and springs for siege equipment) Equipment is owned by a person or organization, and there are 'access lists' that control it's use. Equipment requires maintenance when not in use. Using equipment assumes maintaining it. However, if you let it sit, you have to occasionally use some sort of tool and the input of a small amount of resources to 'maintain' it.

The highest level of equipment is buildings. These are permanent stationary structures. They are produced through specialized resources, tools, and lots of time and effort. A building can have many uses, housing, storage, political, religious, defense, item production. Some functionality of a building only comes into play when then proper equipment is built inside. Also, some equipment can only be assembled inside of adequately sized buildings. Buildings have the same ownership options and maintenance requirements as equipment.

Once an item is created, it can be used, consumed, sold, traded, destroyed or recycled. Some items have active uses, like lanterns, swords. Some items give other items greater use. Some items simply are pieces of larger items. Some items are structural or decoration. Items are the principle means of economy, although there are also service components to the economy.

Item creation has time and skills requirements which creates barriers to entry. This creates a demand for the external creation of items instead of everyone simply creating their own needs.

There will be the opportunity to be the first to experience things. Some quests will result in the discovery of new resources or powers. Some stages of skill advancement constitute the invention of new processes and abilities. Finally, the arrangement and processing of certain resources qualifies as art.

Invention and Discovery will mostly be story elements and occur in scripted events controlled by the world master. However, player actions will determine when these things happen, and the WM will have discretion on who is credited with the discovery. There are benefits for aspiring to these conditions.

Art is pure creativity of the player. It can be many forms, sculpture, painting, music, literature. However, in order to avoid abuse of these systems, all submitted work will be reviewed and screened by the WM's. It will then be made available through normal content deliver systems, with credit given to the artist.

The social aspect of these games is obvious, and automatic. Most players will naturally interact with others and create trust relationships, friendships, rivalries, and grudges. These relationships will be mirrored in the NPC's that also inhabit the world. Players will have the ability to set certain flags on everyone they interact with. This data will be used by the NPCs along with the normal faction statistics to define the NPC's relationship with the player. This is how a characters 'charisma' is calculated. The charisma determines how a person is treated by NPCs and also the usual pricing and information that you'll be able to get from an NPC. The Political and Religious subsystems will also be affected by a persons social ranking.

Basically, this is a way of transferring the 'mood' of a server to the NPCs of that server.

The world is full of resources. This is what all items are created from, and this is the basis of the economy. Resources have a similar hierarchy as the items they create.

The most basic resources are found in nature. This is ore of various types, animal skins, stones, herbs, etc. These are collected through mining, hunting, or simply gathering. Some resources will be monster parts. The second level or resources are cultured, or grown. These are the resources provided by farmers and ranchers, cowhide, dairy products, wool, grains, fruit. There is specific action taken to create the resource node, rather than just finding it.

Once you have gathered the basic resource you can either use this to create something, or refine it. Ore can be smelted into iron, wool can be spun into thread, milk can be made into cheese. Refined resources have more specific uses, but are necessities of the more advanced items. Other types of refinement are jewel cutting, making wood into boards, turning animal skins into varying grades of leather.

The final level of resources are very specific. They are almost high level items themselves, but have little purpose other than being a part of some larger thing. Boards would be formed into A-frames and floor joists, for building construction. Ropes would be made into netting for various equipment. The various components of siege equipment would fall into this highest category of equipment.

In the game, politics means rising in government position. There are several paths to political power. Starting out in local politics, or guild politics will give you localized power quickly. When you've achieved leadership in your local area, you can become a representative in regional or central politics.

Your ability to rise in political power depends on other players opinions of you, and also your social scores. You can progress through a series of elections, appointments, successions, or take-overs. The further up the ladder you go, the more effect your decisions can have. For example, a Mayor has much control over the people in his town. The next step up could be a regional representative who only has a little influence over a large number of people.

Political office has certain perks and responsibilities. The main responsibility is maintaining your position in office. This means you must retain a certain level of social standing, (unless you feel you have enough power to take over against the will of the people.) You also have duties to fulfil, like appointments to keep and meetings to attend. These are simply part of politics, however, if you're interested in politics, you'll probably want to be at these meetings anyway. The perks of political office is the control of NPCs. You make decisions as to their behavior. PC's will be under these decisions as well, but NPC's will be obliged to follow them. Also, you will receive government housing, and financial recompense. Power, fame, and wealth.

Religious duty is your relationship to the gods of the world. This is based partially on your social score, but more on your faction with the gods. (Some gods might require certain social scores in order to find favor with you.) You start off in religion as a worshipper. This is where most people would finish.

Some people, however, would want to progress in religious service. They'd be disciples, missionaries, preachers, clerics, eventually prophets and avatars. They'd assist in building shrines, churches, cathedrals, and temples. They'd participate and lead ceremonies and rituals. Pleasing the gods would be a constant struggle, but it would be rewarded with divine power. Miracles, powers, help and guidance would be poured down. Religious zealots would have powers rivaling the strongest mages. Their only limit being the favor and 'mood' of the gods they serve.

The higher levels of religious leader would be responsible for the ranks of other followers. NPC worshippers, or PC acolytes would interact with those of high religious standing as part of their own ascension.

In both religion and politics, the higher levels that players can reach would put them in the role of 'quest NPC's.' Other PC's would come to them for 'things to do.' Part of the office would be a way to assign these out.