While the majority of the player’s initial time will be taken up adventuring to gain experience, equipment and riches, the ultimate goal has in mind for the players, is for them to take up arms and wage war against the opposing realms. Although this is not enforced, the game is designed around this end, so if the idea of going up against an unpredictable human rather than a computer-controlled NPC appeals to you about as much as invasive groinal surgery, you may want to select something a little cuter: May I recommend Care Bear Treasure Hunt, or something. Okay, I’m kidding, but in my opinion (I would say “Humble” but I don’t want to give my Editor an Hilarity induced hernia) if you’re playing already, it’s by far more of a challenge to try and beat a real live person instead of a Computer Controlled mob who’s behavior can eventually be mapped out.

RvR combat is what the game is about, and it does it rather well. Forces venture out into the frontier lands to locate either enemy invaders, or do some invading of their own (whacking in a foreign country, one could say). RvR only takes place on the frontier, ensuring that grief play (high-level players “ganking” lower players for no other reason than those of a bully) only occurs if you’re foolhardy enough to venture out into the frontier.

Each realm has a frontier split into 4 separate zones. Two Zones are accessible from the safe, home realms – in the case of Albion these are the zones of Forest Sauvage and Snowdonia. The player enters from the safe area and crosses through into the frontier lands through the Border Fortresses. These massive edifices are big, and guarded to the teeth by scores of NPC archers, guardsmen and even mages. Although there is no official warning you have entered the frontier, you are forced to cross through a double portcullis and gate – a sort of medieval airlock. Once out there – you are now fair game to any player from the opposing realm.

The central frontier zone for each realm has 4 border keeps. These keeps are the official first target of the opposing realm. Each keep has a “Keep Lord” who hides behind two sets of walls and a contingent of guards and archers. Once slain, the guards will be “reinforced” every fifteen minutes or so until the Keep Lord is slain, and the keep changes hands to the realm that slew him. Players are able to track the status or the border wars with the “/realm” command. In addition to the forces directly defending the keep, a complement of high-level guards patrol the area around the keep. These guys (the politest term I can use for them) move like the wind and make short work of small raiding parties, effectively exerting a “zone of control” around each keep – making it a strategic move to capture keeps before moving on to the final goal of Realm vs Realm warfare – The Realm Keeps.

If you think taking a Border Keep is tough, try taking a peek at the Relic Keep. These most treasured artifacts are behind walls, huge gates and a multitude of defenders. Each Realm has two relics, one that provides the power of magic to the realm, and one that aids combat. If these relics fall into enemy hands, players of the realm who lost them will lose power in the appropriate ability, while the realm that captured it gets a bonus. Neat, eh?