Hi Lish!
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Thank you for all the messages everyone. My testing slots are now filled. I've invited 8 more people than I originally intended to! I'll be resetting the server for final internal testing within a week. If everything appears to be functional, the server will publically open shortly after.
A few have been asking about what my intentions for the server are. My answers are as follows.
- Do you plan on having a cash shop?
Absolutely not. One of the reasons I left official servers was my dislike of the pay-to-win aspect of Rappelz.
- What about donations?
There may be a time when I do end up opening a section for donations. I'll be devoting the next few months and beyond to this server in place of a job, but my first priority for donations would be a dedicated server.
- Why are you using Hamachi? It doesn't seem very professional.
Hamachi wasn't my first choice. I spent a long, long time trying to configure all my settings and strangling my router with no avail. Hamachi is a quick and simple way to allow players connection to the server, and in the end, simplicity won.
- What kind of modifications are you planning to put in?
New stores have been created that sell CS items.
Most NPCs have received new dialogue or features. This will be expanded upon in the weeks to come.
Quests have received a large boost to EXP, JP and GP. By the time a player has completed most of the quests, they will have earned more than enough to purchase a pre-tamed Koala card from the Ursa vendor.
There are some more fixes and tweaks that I won't be sharing until the server opens. I do want there to be a bit of a surprise!
- Will you run events?
There should be at least one new event every week!
- Will there ever be a GM online?
When won't there? Just kidding! I'll be online and in-game for 8-12 hours a day providing customer support, running events, answering questions, developing new features and debugging them.
- Will the server be easy?
Yes and no. This is not a "one-kill-to-170" server, it's intended to be a replacement to official servers.
- Will there be server wipes?
Never.
- What about backups?
The database will be backed up daily.
- What kind of security does this server have?
All passwords are encrypted with an MD5 salt and the database is secured with DES encryption.
- Where's the website?
It may or may not be coming soon. Stay tuned! (My web host doesn't support MSSQL connections.)
- What are the rates?
They're being tweaked and adjusted to perfection. I'll announce them soon.
- When can I join?!?!
Soon! I want the server to be the best it can be when I open it. Have patience!
If you have any questions, feel free to post here!