Here's the first writing project I have for you guys. Like or not, there's more to come:

Your Guide to the Community of DragonRO!

Introduction: You Got Yourself Into This

Bienvenidos and mabuhay, friend! You’ve stumbled across quite possibly the most complex private Ragnarok Online server The Internet has to offer! What is this place of mystery you ask? Well, assuming this document hasn’t been mercilessly cut from its original area of publishing, the big title at the top of this page should tell you where you are.

That’s right, you’re in Vana’diel.

But in all seriousness, this is DragonRO, also known as “dramaRO.” But you’ll find out why we’re nicknamed that on your own. So, what should you expect from a server that is nearly three years old? Nothing much, but here’s a sampling:

- A friendly(?) community
- A competent(?) staff
- Whining bastards
- Awesome bastards
- Bastards in general (well, I think everyone here has a father, so ignore this one)
- Elitist punks
- Elitist nerds
- Imperialistic know-nothings
- Knowledgeable know-nothings
- Inflammatory orators
- Good grammar
- Bad grammar
- Terrible grammar
- Assassins. Lots and lots of Assassins.

This guide is here to help you so that you won’t become one of those types of people listed above (save for the good attributes. You’ll want to aspire to be one of those). Included in this guide is helpful advice in various subjects, featuring:

- Your First Day in the Forums
- Your First Day in-game
- How to spot an idiot
- Choosing the right guild
- Understanding the GM Team
- Understanding the Player Base
- Understanding the obsessions of some of the members of the community
- Democracy in America

As you can tell, this guide will go on as long as it needs to. You don’t have to follow my advice though. Some just prefer to shoot the breeze and hope they end up succeeding. They end up banned instead. So, brave fledgling dROnian, do you have what it takes to be part of this quagmire of miscellany? Then I advise you to create a character, and be prepared for the thrill of no lifetime.

Yours in-game but never in real life,
Cenese

In the next issue of "Your Guide," we cover the subject of: Your First Day

Disclaimer!
Even though this is passed off as a guide, the views and opinions of the author do not reflect the overall attitude of DragonRO or its affiliates. In no way should you take this guide seriously should it sound unusual at times. Trust me, it'll sound weird everywhere. The author would still like to see proper grammar around here, though. Whatever he says in this thing is his opinion alone. You are warned again: Do not take this guide seriously. That is all.

EDIT BY CUISI:

here's a Table of Contents, complete with hyperlinks, for easy browsing. enjoy.



Section One: Your First Day, Part One: The Forums
Section Two: Your First Day, Part Two: Getting in the Game
Section Three: The GM Team of dRO
Section Four: The Archetypes of the dRO Community
Section Five: The Biting Issues (The Controversial Section, Minus the Sex)
Section Six: Legendary Players and Noteworthy Guilds
Appendix A: Democracy in dRO
Appendix B: Glossary of Terms
Appendix C: The Jobs of this Game
Postscript: One Final Recommendation

I'm very flattered! To show my gratitude, have another Wall of Text:

Unidad Uno, Etapa Uno: Your First Day, Part One: The Forums

By now you’ve installed, patched, and are now playing RO through Alt+Tab. Good for you! You’re getting ahead of yourself and should slow down, but it’s preferred that you start over. There are a few things you should do before you hit that empty space to create your artificial self in-game:

- Make a Forum Account
- Make an account in-game

For the sake of space, we will only cover the Forums in this installment.

First, you have your Forum account. All you need to do is simply register with our Forum and post in the introduction subsection in the “Random Stuff” area. By introducing yourself, you’re making yourself an active member of the community instead of some soulless drone who only logs on the game and the game only, opening up the suspicion that you’re botting. Being a member of the Forums as well as the game gives the following benefits:

- You can make your voice be heard, because we ignore Guest users
- Your opinions will have a slightly deeper meaning in them
- You have successfully added two (2) years to your maximum life expectancy
- You now have access to some other exclusive subforums, like the forbidden “Adults Only” section
- You have marked yourself for the vets just in case your grammar sucks

Speaking of good grammar, it’s recommended that you have it. You’ll be easier to read and people won’t make fun of you behind your back as often. If English isn’t your first language, it’s okay. You have room to work with. For those raised under an English-speaking roof and still go out of their way to pass off “plz” as a legitimate word, you have earned my scorn and perpetual refusal to leech you. So, do your very best to be readable, okay?

While we’re on the topic of Forums, you should also familiarize yourself with the sections. You have:

- Payon Square
- Random Stuff
- How to Connect
- Bugs and Glitches
- Custom Quests
- Merchants
- Suggestions
- Fan Fictions and Pictures
- Norse Mythology
- News
- Polls

Payon Square is where people go to learn about what’s happening on the server. On occasion you’ll read about people leaving the server or people hosting their own homegrown events. I tried hosting my own event once, and people didn’t express interest. At all. But don’t let that stop you. Chances are if you have boobs people will pay attention to you.

Random Stuff is a place where you can talk about subjects not related to RO. Chances are you’ll be talking about video games more than anything else. You’ll also find the Introductions and Games section here. Go out of your way to read into those. It really helps your post count.

How to Connect is what it says. Just follow the directions in there and you’re guaranteed a medal.

Bugs and Glitches is a place where well-meaning individuals post about Bugs or potential exploits in-game for the GMs to look into. Of course, cheaters and asshats use this place to find out about those exploits and use them to fulfill their sick and twisted fantasies. If you see those jerks doing what’s not supposed to be done, feel free to insult them. Chances are they’ll overreact and supply you with minutes of entertainment.

Custom Quests is a place where you can receive a quest for an item that’s really hard to get through legitimate means. It doesn’t matter anyway. Most of the quests the Quest Team gives you are as hard as twenty-year-old Werthers Originals. Only do this if you’re into sadomasochism.

Fan Fictions and Pictures means what it says. Post pictures or pieces of writing and get feedback. You’ll do a lot better here if you draw, because if you try to post a written piece the only comments you’ll get are as follows, assuming they get read at all:

“ I didn’t read your material at all but based on <name>’s opinion it must be really good.”

“Tits or GTFO.”

“You’re gay.”

Or, you’ll get a shopped picture resembling your utter failure, promptly followed by a “j/k.” So for you Dickenses out there- you’ve been warned.

All the other subforums are negligible. Nobody will take your suggestions or comments and no one gives a damn about Mythology. Well, I do, but not the Norse kind.

Keep in mind the general rules when posting in any of these Forums. Don’t insult people because that starts a Flame War. Flame Wars are full of garbage and usually takes an intelligent person to end them. Either that or a pimp slap from one of the Forum Mods.

Avoid spam. Shoulder Pork and Ham is a delicious meat substitute that should be a part of every College Kid’s diet. Spam is the Down Syndrome of The Internet and should be avoided. Replies that are grossly off-topic count as spam and warrant a boot in the ass. Don’t do it.

Well, those are the two basic rules. Everything else you can make up as you go. That’s how America’s Presidents do it at least. With that I leave you, the reader, to your own devices. Make anything explode and I’m pretty sure you won’t get any love from any of us until you reach your High Class, and even that won’t save you if you don’t know how to use a period.

Don’t shoot off one-liners!
Cenese

In the next installment of “Your Guide” : Your First Day In-Game

Section Two: Your First Day, Part Two: Getting in the Game

Now that you have the hang of forum browsing, it’s time to play the game. After downloading and installing the necessary material, open up Sak X and create a character. Be very careful how you name your character and how it looks, because you won’t be able to go back and change the name or hairstyle. But that comes later.

Let’s talk gender. You can determine your character’s gender by adding a _M or _F at the end of your user name at the login screen. Mature and understanding individuals won’t care what gender you choose. Sadly, this server’s population is full of horny teenage boys who want nothing but the view of pixilated boobies. Think carefully before choosing your gender. If you’re comfortable with playing as a character not matching your real sex, then by all means scar some people. It may even work to your advantage.

For example, if you play as a female, you may get special treatment. Some fools may even give you free items or a tank in an attempt to “romance” you. I can assure you that those scrubs have no life and warrant a reality check. If you’re a dude who plays a girl, feel free to discard your veil and ruin the fun for the idiot. Sure, you may make an enemy or have the privilege to read a few swears, but most of the time the reaction is well worth it. Ask any male who plays as a Mithra in FFXI to see what I mean. Just keep in mind that keeping up the charade for a prolonged period of time may cause severe and long-running consequences.

Male characters make up about 75% of the server’s population. Yes, you’re in for a sausage fest, folks. But remember that you’re here to have fun above everything else. How you go about getting your fix of entertainment is entirely up to you.

After gender, pick your name. Most people are content with slapping the keyboard and jumbling out anything that comes out. Others choose their name by hobby. Others just choose a random set of letters and numbers and end up being the most powerful players on the server. Unfortunately, those few who choose that path get no respect from the community and receive ridicule for their poor grasp of grammar and syntax. Choose your name carefully, because that’s how most people judge you. Skill be damned.

I won’t go into jobs, because you can find plenty of guides regarding those. Just remember that you are assumed an idiot if you choose Assassin. If you decide to be a Wizard and get really high level, new people will pester you to the ends of the earth for a leech. All other jobs have their strengths and weaknesses. Just know you won’t last long if you don’t bother leveling.

Now that you have some firm knowledge of what people see in characters, it’s time to interface with the people themselves. Feel free to treat the game like your own personal chat program and take up space in the server’s capital, Payon. Sometimes you’ll see people dueling each other, only for one of the contenders to complain at the end of the duel when they die. That’s common. Ignore it.

If you see anyone type in all caps, they’re probably retarded. Caps Lock is a symbol of immaturity and the inability to control one’s bladder. Don’t bother with it unless you aren’t potty trained.

As you progress along the game other players will commend you for your skill in battle and (hopefully) good speech. Maybe you’ll get lucky and get an invite to a guild. Guilds are fun little throngs where people can band together and kick the ever-loving snot out of other guilds in something called the War of Emperium. Don’t worry about that yet, though. We’ll cover that in another section.

Take the time to learn the interface of the game. High level skills won’t do you any good if you don’t understand what they specifically do and how often you can use them. Politely ask veteran players of the same job as you for advice and pointers. When you show respect, you’ll get some in return. Booting someone in the ass warrants a boot in your ass as well.

No whining, please. Some people forget that this is a game and make big things out of the smallest issues. If you yourself are tempted to start cussing in anguish, remember this phrase:

What would Jaylor do?

You’ll find out more about him later, but rest assured you can follow his example.

Well, I think I’ve told you all there is to know about what to expect in-game. I’m not here to spoon feed you all the mechanics of RO. Just dive right in and roll along with what you get. Just be sure to go outside from time to time.

… And if I see anyone begging in Payon Square, I’ll- you know, I can’t come up with anything witty to end this installment off. The next section will be better. I promise.

Wash your hands before setting your hotkeys!
Cenese

In the next installment of “Your Guide,” we’ll cover: The GM Team.