Ether Saga Online

The new Ether Saga Odyssey launched April 27, 2011. This update upgraded the game engine and user interface as well as adding new starting areas, races, and pets.

In character creation, you get a choice of three races: Renzu, Shenzu, and Yaoh. Each race has different goals, so some quests differ, but there is no handicap as far as what classes or professions you can play. Each receives a different starting pet.

When designing your character, you can choose either gender. You're offered a variety of choices in hair style and color, and facial features. The most important thing to pay attention to here is your choice of birthdate for your character.

Birthdate determines three bonus (nascent) skills you attain as you level, and these can be powerful, helpful, or useless depending on what you get and how you plan to play. Ardh, on the Ether Saga official site forums, has created a birthday skill calculator, allowing you to find the skill you feel would best serve your class/playing style, pick the best combo including it, and find the birthday you'd need to receive it.

The nascent skills offer boosts involving the attributes, which are: Oora, Unda, Widu, Pyra, and Erda. Class skills are based on these attributes, so choosing nascent skills that will compliment your class skills is the best course. It will serve you better if you have an idea of what general build you plan to follow before you create your character and choose the birthdate, so that you have an idea of which attributes you'll be using and thus what skills will be useful to you. I have a quick class guide here.

Here's another place to see Nascent skill combos and the birthdays that give them. Just choose your race from the drop down menu on the upper right. That's where you change the month view, also.

There are no restrictions on classes; they are open to all three races. The six classes are:

Conjurer: Uses Elemental Magics.
Dragoon: Spear-wielding warrior.
Mystic: Uses Healing, reviving, and blessing magics.
Ranger: Bow-wielder with elemental skill.
Rogue: Stealthy dagger-wielder.
Shaman: Short-range physical attack, buffs, and dark effects.

For a more in-depth look at each class, with answers to common questions like build and pet advice, see my Ether Saga Online Class Guide.

In Pokari City, Roki the Woodsman teaches gathering skills, and Bolo the Craftsman teaches all crafting vocations except Petcraft. In Gau's Fazenda, Molon the Book teaches Petcraft.

You can only have two vocations at a time, but can forget one at will if you wish to replace it with another.

Crafting Skills
Guardian Forging
class: Shaman, Dragoon
gathering skill: Mining

Scout Crafting
class: Ranger, Rogue
gathering skill: Woodcutting

Arcane Tailoring
class: Mystic, Conjurer
gathering skill: Hunting

Herbalism
gathering skill: Foraging

Cooking
gathering skill: Foraging

Petcraft
gathering skill: Foraging, Mining

Each race starts with a pet. Additional pets are given as quest rewards. At level 15 you can begin taming your own pets.

Pets fight beside you in battle. Each has food it likes that will refill its life or belly (hunger) meter. If your pet dies it will automatically revive after three minutes.

When you catch a pet, they have random bonuses and personality. The temperaments Fierce, Bright, Cautious, and Normal are desirable for different reasons. Bright pets can buff and heal. Normal pets heal. Fierce pets are aggressive. Cautious pets negate enemy abilities.

Here's a great site with a picture list of pets and pet abilities, and lots more: eso.mmosite.com

You can challenge someone to a duel by right-clicking on them and choosing duel.

After level 45, characters enter a permanent state of open PK (player killing enabled). You can only playerkill someone who is also level 45 or higher. There are, however, consequences for random playerkilling, so you needn't fear being killed indiscriminately.

If you prefer not to deal with PK at all, there are PVE-only (player vs. environment) realms.

The PK system has penalties for killing unprovoked, and uses colored name coding. Attacking or killing white name players earns infamy. Attacking a white name player turns your name orange. Killing a white name player gives you a red name. White name players have no infamy and will not drop items if killed. The lower level your victim is, the higher the infamy penalty for PKing them.

PK penalties:
Red name players will drop in-bag and equipped items every time they die.
They lose 5% experience when they die, until their exp reaches 0.
Infamy greater than 5 causes the player to move more slowly.
Will lose mana more easily when infamy is greater than 5.
Red names will be attacked by city guards.

Ether Saga has recently added alliances and Territory Wars, with new pets, pet items, and gems available as part of the new territory war rewards system.

Requirements:
Both at least level 30.

What to do:
Form a party with your intended, and see the Eldest Matchmaker in Pokari city for the marriage quest. You'll be married after you finish the quest, which takes Marriage Packs to complete. The packs can be purchased in the Heaven Repository.

Marriage Benefits:
Status Notice: You will be notified when your spouse logs in or out.
Embrace: Animation "Embrace" available.
Bond of Love: A Lover's Memento allows you to teleport to your spouse.