Lineage 2 World Overview

Lineage 2 is a massively multiplayer role-playing game where you can do more than level a character: you can take part in the political, economic and social life of the world. Below is the prologue and a general overview of the game world: the kingdoms, races and classes, character progression and the main game systems.

The battle has only begun

Picture a huge fortified castle surrounded by besiegers. Defenders bustle on the walls preparing for battle, while dragon riders circle above the attackers' camp, rallying their own side and terrifying the enemy.

For a moment there is ringing silence - and then the cry "Charge!" rolls across the field. The ranks of besiegers advance on the castle: siege ballistas creak, the wheels of accelerating battering rams screech. The defenders answer with catapults hurling fire that spreads chaos among the attackers, and sharp-eyed elven archers find the weak spots in even the strongest knightly armor. But the advance cannot be stopped.

The ballistas, standing out of reach of most of the defending archers, punch holes in the walls. The rams race toward the gates, followed by hundreds of roaring orc mercenaries: for an orc, falling in battle is an honor, but coming back alive with an enemy's scalp is glory. The sky darkens with the defenders' arrows, yet the avalanche of mercenaries pauses only for a moment, flows over the bodies of the fallen and surges toward the walls with even greater force.

The archers on the walls fire without pause, joined by a few mages, although their spells are less effective at long range. Most of the mercenaries are already dead, but nothing can stop the speeding ram - it crashes into the gates with a deafening crack and smashes them to splinters. The way into the castle is open!

A war horn sounds, and the attackers' main force charges. The dragon riders soar up and dive at the walls - the dragons are so fast that even elven archers struggle to hit them. But one rider makes a mistake, and an elven arrow finds him. The defenders' cries of triumph instantly turn into screams - dragon fire can melt even stone.

The defenders have an answer to dragons too: dodging a powerful, fast crossbow bolt is not easy, and dwarven mithril bolt heads pierce even dragon scales. Having lost several dragons, the riders retreat, but they have done their job - the walls by the gates are cleared, and the vanguard is already slipping into the castle.

The outcome of this battle is in your hands!

The kingdoms

The world of Lineage 2 consists of two continents, Aden and Gracia, home to three historically established kingdoms. The Kingdom of Aden was founded by King Raoul, who put an end to a civil war. The Kingdom of Elmore arose on the ruins of the ancient state of the Titans - proud orcs and skilled dwarves live there now.

Contact with the Kingdom of Gracia, which lies across the sea west of Aden, was lost several decades ago when a civil war broke out there. No news has come from it since. The civil war in Aden ended long ago, but its echoes can still be heard in tavern whispers, dark alleys and the secret halls of castles.

You begin your journey on the continent of Aden at the most difficult time for the kingdom. Unlike most, who prefer to pray to the gods, you have the chance to change the course of history and write a page bearing your own name - whether through great deeds or a struggle for power.

The game does not tie you to a storyline or to leveling: maxing out a character is not an end goal in itself. You can take whatever part you like in the political, economic and social life of the world - and even become king of two continents.

The Kingdom of Aden is vast: walking from one end to the other takes several hours, and that is if you stick to the relatively safe trade roads. A traveler who leaves the beaten path to take a shortcut may find all kinds of creatures waiting. Then again, some travelers are not so defenseless - who knows what hides behind a cloak and mask.

Races and classes

There are five races: Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Orcs and Dark Elves. Characters of every race except Dwarves can be either fighters or mages.

Lineage 2 has a rigid class system and a somewhat more flexible subclass system. After choosing a race, the player decides whether the character will be a mage or a fighter. Later the player picks a further development path, which differs for each race.

• Fighters rely on the strength of their weapons and the toughness of their armor. With a powerful weapon and heavy armor, a fighter can easily deal with several opponents. Combat can run automatically or under the player's control using special skills.
• Mages rely on the power of their spells. Physically weak and dressed in light cloth robes, they will not last a moment in melee, so spell power, distance to the enemy and casting speed matter most - sometimes it is better to run than to try to finish an attack spell. Mages can also summon magical creatures.

Each race has its own strengths and weaknesses. For example, only Dwarves can craft items and make money practically out of thin air, but they cannot cast spells. Humans have no special racial abilities, but they have the most development paths.

Once a development path is chosen, there is no turning back. You can only change profession by creating a new character or by completing a special quest available only to very powerful characters.

The struggle to survive

To achieve anything, you have to develop your character. As the level rises, the character gains better skills and can wear better equipment. The only way to progress is to hunt monsters for experience and levels. Killing a monster gives experience, while dying takes experience away and can even cost a level and the skills that came with it.

Fighting other players (PvP) is another key part of the game. You can test your strength against others, or team up for a shared goal: taking a castle or even a whole territory. Other players can, of course, get in your way. Killing other players is not forbidden, but killing without cause (PK) is punished by game mechanics: a PK who dies may lose equipment.

At some point hunting alone becomes difficult: the game is built around teamwork, though it does not forbid playing as a lone wolf. Team play is rewarded with bonus experience and experience sharing. In a party, players can see each other's health and status, which makes fighting monsters and other characters much more effective.

Founding a clan is the natural continuation of team play: clans have access to features that ordinary players do not. See Clan Basics for details.

The three pillars: game systems

The political system resembles feudalism. Even a strong clan cannot rely on itself alone - it needs the support of other clans and players, since allies often decide whether a plan succeeds. A delegation system lets clan leaders hand part of their duties to clan members, making clan management faster and more efficient.

The economic system is based on free trade between players. Prices follow supply and demand, so you can earn a lot simply by buying low and selling high. Castle owners earn money from taxes on trade in towns, from harvests and from producing special items out of them.

The social system lets you keep a friends list and put unwanted characters on a blacklist. Players can recommend each other - the so-called trust system: the name of a player recommended by enough people turns sky blue, meaning that person can most likely be trusted. Each clan has its own bulletin board where the leader can announce upcoming events and set meeting times without being online all the time. Players can also chat on the forum both in and out of the game.

Additional notes

According to the official game description from the Hellbound era (2009):

• The world is divided into three kingdoms. Elmore in the north is a mighty warlike power and a direct descendant of the ancient kingdom of Elmoreden. Aden in the south is the youngest and largest kingdom, founded by the late King Raoul. Gracia in the west, across the ocean, is mired in a struggle for the throne between blood relatives. The kingdoms keep a shaky balance, but each is vulnerable from within: the feudal estates persistently strive for independence.
• The lands of Aden are ruled from nine castles: Gludio, Dion, Giran, Oren, Innadril, Goddard, Schuttgart, Rune and Aden. A lord's power over their estate equals a king's.
• Castle sieges take place once a week; up to 800 players can clash in a single siege.
• The clan owning a castle can tax nearby shops, expand the castle's facilities, produce various items and gets a dragon for its lord to rule the skies. Through the manor system, the lord decides which seeds to sell and how many; a good balance of supply and demand makes the seed trade very profitable.
• A level 75 character can become a Noblesse. Nobles fight in the Grand Olympiad in the east; the noble with the most points in their class becomes a Hero and receives an exclusive weapon and a special aura. No more than 36 Heroes can exist in the game at the same time.